Chuck Versus the Chuckless Summer:  Beth & AJ
by Renegade.Girl13
Summary: The co-op writings connected to my story 'Chuck versus the Chuckless Summer: Beth' and lifeislikeaboxofbertiebott's story 'Chuck versus the Chuckless Summer: AJ'.
1. Orange Morning

A/N: So, here it is, the next piece of Chuck versus the Chuckless Summer! This one was written as a co-op between AC and myself-we just kept sending it back and forth via skype. Hopefully, you like it. It occurs directly after AJ's beginning chapter on lifeislikeaboxofbertiebott's story (and if you haven't checked it out, you need to. Cause it rocks.) Anyway, I don't own Chuck & company; I do own Beth, AC owns AJ-so no sueing and no stealing, thanks. :) By the way, if you just came upon this, and haven't read CvtCS, you should, or else you may not completely understand Beth and AJ, or their storyline. So, without further ado, here it is!

* * *

Beth sleepily made her way through the back entrance of Orange Orange the next morning. Sarah had said she'd be in later—about noonish. She cracked her back wearily and glanced at the clock: only 7:30. Damn packing. Loading everything up in Texas had been easy; unloading was another story. Her muscles still ached from all the heavy lifting, but there was no way she would have asked Casey for help—she wanted to prove to herself (and to Casey) that she wouldn't be a burden. It didn't work out quite like she planned. He didn't seem to care, the only thing it proved to her was she needed to start working out again.

Clicking on the lights, she unlocked the door and readied herself to be bored for the next four and a half hours. Not fifteen minutes into her shift, the bell over the door chimed. Looking up, Beth saw a brunette in a Nerd Herd uniform (she recognized it as the same uniform Chuck had been wearing the day before) stepping cheerfully through the door, her tie-dye socks a sharp contrast to the rest of her outfit.

Since AJ's shift didn't actually start until 8, decided to grab a quick snack before braving the Buy More. She'd asked Chuck if he wanted to come along, but he'd promised Morgan he'd meet him before work, so she'd been left to venture into the yogurt haven alone. The ginger-haired girl behind the counter smiled at her, and asked, "What can I get you?"

Quickly scanning her choices, AJ picked the oddest sounding yogurt, "Killer Kiwi", and took a seat near the counter to eat it.

"How can you eat that stuff?"

AJ looked up to see the girl pulling a disgusted face. Savoring her first bite of yogurt, she took a second to answer her. "Well, you put the spoon in your mouth and…"

A wry smile appeared on her face. "Alright, I'll give you that. But, it's so…weird. The texture is so unpleasant. I'm Beth by the way, have you lived in Burbank for awhile?"

"Hi Beth, I'm AJ. I actually just moved here, but I used to spend the summers here with my grandmother when I was a kid. And I don't know what you're talking about, yogurt is amazing!"

Beth shrugged noncommittally, then walked around the counter and took the seat across from AJ. "I'll take your word for it. I just moved here too, from Texas."

In between mouthfuls of yogurt, AJ replied, "That's awesome, I love Texas! But you know, there's plenty of stuff to do around here as well. Like, um, shopping at the Buy More!"

Beth raised an eyebrow. AJ shrugged with a goofy grin. "I just got a job there; it was the first thing that came to mind."

"No kidding, my roommate works at the Buy More too! Do you happen to know John Casey?"

AJ suddenly choked on her Killer Kiwi. "Holy guacamole, we must be neighbors then!"

"Really? That's awesome! We'll have to hang out sometime—I could offer my apartment but…Casey's a little funny about inviting people over. You're always more than welcome here at Orange Orange though. Employees get free yogurt; you can have mine, since I will never eat it."

"You call your roommate by his last name? And don't worry, I'm living on my own, so you're welcome to stop by there whenever. Also, you are the nicest person ever for giving me your share of yogurty goodness!"

Beth laughed, and blushed ever so slightly at the compliment. "John doesn't really suit Casey; he's too…gruff to be addressed by his first name. And it's seriously no big deal about the yogurt, from what my coworker Sarah says, we rarely have customers, so I'd appreciate the company."

"Wait, Chuck's girlfriend Sarah?"

"You know Chuck?"

"_You_ know Chuck?"

"Hold on, I'm getting confused. I know Chuck through Sarah. I haven't known him long though. He seems like a nice guy. How do you know Chuck?"

A reminiscent smile appeared on AJ's face. "We've known each other since childhood—Chuck, Morgan, and I would play video games and horse around during the summer."

"Wait, who's Morgan?"

"Chuck's best friend. He works at Buy More too."

"Does everybody cool work at Buy More? Maybe I should have worked there instead…"

AJ laughed. "No way! Then you wouldn't be able to give me yogurt. And besides, Ellie says working at the Buy More isn't a good way to spend your life."

Beth looked confused again. "And who's Ellie?"

"Chuck's overprotective older sister. She's nice though. Now that you know me and Sarah, she'll probably want to meet you. And force you to girl's nights. But only when Awesome doesn't work."

"Oh, cool! Umm…What's an Awesome?"

AJ snickered unabashedly. "Awesome is Ellie's fiancée. I haven't met him yet, but Chuck and Morgan say he's, well, awesome. I expect we'll both meet him at the neighborhood party Ellie's organizing."

Beth nodded. "Well, it sounds to me like we'll be seeing a lot more of each other."

AJ smiled. "Yeah, I guess so. Well, I better go, wouldn't want to be late for my first day of work."

"Okay, well stop by again whenever you get the chance."

"Will do!"

Both of them stood and shook hands, and AJ threw her empty yogurt cup and spoon in the trash. With a final wave at her new friend, she exited the Orange Orange, thinking maybe she'd stick around Burbank for a while longer than she'd originally planned. Beth meanwhile stood staring at the door out of which AJ had left. Her mind swirled with the names of all the new people she'd be meeting. She had a feeling AJ and her were going to be good friends. A spark of excitement flashed in her eyes. Maybe Burbank wouldn't be as bad as she thought.

* * *

_Love it? Hate it? Let us know what you thought! Please please review, it's chocolate and candy to us. _


	2. Christmas in Burbank: Part 1

A/N: So, this is AC 1st of all (LB & I decided to alternate in writing the A/Ns). I know it's been more than a month since we last posted a co-op, but I promise there are more coming & this is only the 1st part of this 1, so we'll definitely try to post some more of it soon. It starts at the end of the Chuck season 2 episode Chuck versus the Santa Claus, so some minor spoilers for that. If you haven't read LB's Chuck Versus the Chuckless Summer: Beth or my Chuck Versus the Chuckless Summer: AJ (posted under lifeislikeaboxofbertiebotts), then 1st of all, you should & 2nd of all this won't make any sense. Oh, & Chuck doesn't belong to us. Man, sorry for the long intro, anywho, here's Part 1 of Christmas in Burbank:

* * *

"Well, it may not be Paris or Cairo, but Burbank Christmases are certainly are exciting," AJ commented to Beth as they walked out of the Buy More.

Beth nodded. When she'd come into the electronics store to do some last-minute shopping, she certainly hadn't anticipated being held hostage. Or having to go pick up her roommate from the hospital.

"You're still coming to Ellie's Christmas party tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah, wouldn't miss it."

"Good." AJ paused, then added, "You should try and convince Casey to come with you, maybe he'd stopped being such a Grinch and embrace a bit of the Christmas spirit."

Beth nodded. "I'll see what I can do. Though I'm not sure how keen he'll be, considering what happened earlier. I don't think he's too happy about losing a toe. I mean, not that he should be. At least it was only a toe. Better than a finger I guess. Can you imagine if John had lost his finger?"

"I doubt either of you could ever recover from the loss," AJ said with a Cheshire grin. Really, Beth made it way too easy to tease her.

"Yeah, he'd be ridiculous to live with—hey!" She halfheartedly flung out a weak punch at AJ. "I've told you, we're not like _that._ We won't be like that. The only reason I'd suffer is because he'd be worse than a bear, always growling. And he'd probably try to kill Chuck in retribution. And then he'd land himself in the big house."

"Face it, Beth, you're over the moon for Casey. God only knows what you see in him, but whatever rocks your boat." AJ leaned up against her Jeep, grinning. "Anyway, there's a Twilight Zone marathon at the Bartowskis' calling my name, so I'll see you later."

Beth shook her head. "_You're_ living in the twilight zone if you think I'm head over heels for John Casey. Now _that_ would be a Christmas miracle."

She waved to AJ and headed to her own truck, still shaking her head, muttering about foolish Nerd Herders. Duke's engine purred to life and she headed towards the hospital, but stopped by CVS first. Armed with Guns & Ammo, The Daily Shooter, and The Rifleman magazines, plus a bottle of bourbon, she was ready to deal with John.

* * *

"No."

"You haven't even heard what I'm going to say!"

"Doesn't matter. Answer's no."

"Ugh!" Beth stared John down, hoping he'd change his mind. She just asked if she could ask him a question. And he said 'no'. Well, she was never one to listen to what others told her. He was going to listen, even if it killed him.  
"So, Ellie's having a Christmas party…"

"I'm not going."

Beth huffed, and turned to exit the living room. He was being such a Grinch. She walked into the kitchen, but turned around. No, she wasn't going to let him play his pity party game.

"—Beth I said,"

"Yeah, I heard what you said. And it's a bunch of bull. You, John Casey, are going to stop moping around because you lost a toe, and you're going to show up at the Bartowski Christmas party with me."

He growled in annoyance, but Beth stood her ground. "That doesn't' frighten me, and you know it. Give it up—you're going to the party."

"Going to parties isn't in my list of Christmas traditions."

"That's no problem—new traditions are made all the time. You'll learn to love it."

"And if I say no?"

"I'm not allowing you to." She tossed him one of the magazines she'd bought, and set some desserts next to him. "Now eat these and think about what you're wearing to the party—because I want to see you in something other than black. I've got to call Ellie and tell her to make room for one more."

"I'm not—"

"Yeah, yeah, not going. Give it up—I'm stubborn as a mule—you're not going to win against me. You're going to the Christmas party, and you're _going_ to have a good time. No ifs, ands, or buts. End of story."

He tried to say something else, but Beth brushed him off. Really, it was for his own good. The company would be nice, and plus, it'd stop him from dwelling on his missing ligament. Not to mention, anything John Casey _didn't_ want to go to had to be good in some sense.

* * *

"Well, Beth just called. I don't know how she did it, but she's convinced John to come to the party tomorrow," Ellie said as she settled back on the couch.

"That's awesome," Devon said. "The more the merrier!"

"Now if only you could convince Sarah," AJ said the Chuck. Rather than sit in the armchairs, the pair of them were sitting on the floor in front of the couch to make passing the popcorn back and forth easier.

"Oh, I don't know, she made it pretty clear she dislikes the holidays," Chuck said, his eyes fixed on the TV screen. AJ and Ellie both pulled identical frowns.

"Still, she can't spend Christmas by herself," Ellie said. "At least get her to come for dinner!"

Chuck sighed. "I'll see what I can do."

That being settled, AJ casually asked, "Does anybody know if Morgan's bringing Anna?"

"No, didn't you hear? They had a fight; apparently Lester and Anna kissed."

AJ tried not to grin too much. "Oh, that's too bad."

Ellie didn't weigh in. After Thanksgiving, she was honestly a bit relieved that Anna wasn't coming, though common courtesy dictated she shouldn't say that. Instead, she said, "We're going to have a pretty good turnout this year. Let's see, the four of us, Beth and John, Sarah, and Morgan. I'm not forgetting anyone, am I?"

"No, that sounds right. What time do you want me to come over to help with dinner tomorrow?"

"Oh, around two or three should fine. But are you sure you want to help?"

AJ scoffed. "Ellie, please, after all you've done for me, it's the least I can do. Besides, it'll be fun."

"Yes, it will be." Ellie smiled. "Just as long as it's less exciting than today was."

Devon agreed, "That'd be awesome."

Chuck nodded, and the group gradually returned their attention to The Twilight Zone. It was going to be an interesting Christmas.

* * *

"John, which take out do you want? We've got Thai, Chinese, and some weird sizzler shrimp thing AJ said was delicious."

He grunted, and Beth sighed. Ever since she'd flat-out told him they were going to Ellie's Christmas party, he'd been growly. Well, he'd been growly before she told him, for that matter. Apparently, Christmas didn't bring out the happiest in _all_ people. Then again, most people didn't have their toes shot off…she bit her lip to keep form smiling. It wasn't that she found losing a toe funny—but out of all people, Beth had figured John would be someone who would lose an arm in battle, or have a heroic gaping scar on his chest from a bomb exploding…not losing a toe because someone didn't know how to handle a gun. Or pretended not to know, in any case.

Moving to the couch, she perched herself on the armrest of John's chair, pretending not to hear his growl of irritation. She tossed a stack of takeout menus in his lap.

"Pick one. You need to eat—hospital food doesn't count. There's also pizza—we could order pizza. Or…maybe…do you even want takeout? I can cook something too—I just thought takeout would be quicker. There's soup. Chicken noodle or tomato or—"

"—I'm not sick, Beth."

She paused. "Well…I didn't say you were."

"Soup?"

"Oh! Soup doesn't just have to be for sick people. It's healthy—gives you lots of vitamins and nutrients, which will help you heal quicker."

He grunted, and she shrugged her shoulders. "That's it. I'm making soup. Or stew, as it were. I think I have a pound of sirloin thawed…I know! I'll make goulash."

John's nose curled at the name, and Beth shook her head. "Yes, I realize it has a bad rep. But it's actually really good. I had it in St. Petersburg with my home-family. If you make it the right way, it's really good. And it's simple to make."

She kept talking as she went in the kitchen to prepare the ingredients, leaving John to wonder if she realized he had no idea what she was saying. He looked around the room, idly passing over the takeout menus. At least it gave him something to look at. He would grab his Glock to clean, but the last time he went to get up, Beth gave him hell. His curiosity piqued when he saw a rumpled piece of loose-leaf sticking out from between the Asian Seven Wonders takeout and Pizza Hut's menu. After glancing to make sure Beth was still busy in the kitchen, he pulled it out.

There was writing on it, but it wasn't Beth's typical light, feminine handwriting. John's scowl got darker as he read the note.

_Beth,_

_I'd hoped to catch you before you left, but Kate told me you had errands to run. Your kindness to my sister is appreciated—there aren't enough sweet people in the world like you. The cookies you made were delicious; all of the kids enjoyed them. Kate told me about your truck trouble—I know you're more than capable of changing a flat, but if the need should ever arise, I'd be more than happy to give you a ride. My number's 513-466-3809. I hope to get to know you more—you make the sun in Burbank shine a bit brighter._

_Respectfully ours,_

_Oliver Reynolds_

Oliver Reynolds…John vaguely remembered Beth talking about him a couple times before. The man from her Wednesday coffee runs. He was sure the man was bad news—who knew how close he was trying to get. Beth didn't need to fraternize with civilians; she had a job to do here; people like him would only get in the way. Besides, only nerds like Bartowski or the troll had names like 'Oliver'. Hearing Beth's upbeat humming growing closer, he put the letter back and set the menus to the side. Beth waltzed in, carrying a cup of something that smelled suspiciously like lavender.

"I'm not drinking that fruity stuff."

Beth rolled her eyes, set the drink on the end table, and headed towards the kitchen again. "It's not for you, Mr. Grumpy gills. The tea's mine. You get," She paused for a moment, while she grabbed his drink and brought it back. "This."

He took a long swig of the amber-colored liquid. "Johnny Walker black."

She nodded. "I thought you'd approve."

He grunted in appreciation. Smiling, she settled herself on the edge of the chair again. "You're welcome. The soup will be done in an hour or so—do you need anything? I could grab you a book. Or if you wanted something else to use as your foot rest. How is your foot? The doctor said it would heal alright, but would be a little painful to walk on. Do you need some Tylenol? Or I could get you,"

"—I'm fine Beth."

"But people who are fine don't' say they're fine. Saying fine means you're not fine and you just want the conversation over. Are you sure you're alright?"

"And if I'm not?"

She slid partly off the arm of the chair so that she casually leaned against him and nudged his shoulder. "Then I'd help, silly. It's no fun being hurt."

He rolled his eyes. She really was persistent. "I've been to Afghanistan, Iraq, parts of Saudi Arabia, Iran, Uzbekistan, and Israel. I've been tortured for information, set out to withstand beatings that would have killed a lesser man, and you're worried about me because of an injured _toe?_"

Beth cocked her head to the side, thinking about it. Well…yeah. She was. "Any injury, no matter how small, is taken seriously, because it's more than no injury at all. And…well…taking care of others is my specialty. Now if you'd just let me take care of everything, you'd relax."

John Casey highly doubted that. In fact, he knew for a fact if Beth took care of everything, his blood pressure would skyrocket, and he'd probably start to get an itchy trigger finger. Man, he was in for a long night.

* * *

AJ woke up on the Bartowskis' couch, tucked under a blanket with a pillow under her head. "Wha—?"

"Merry Christmas," Awesome called from the kitchen as AJ sat up. "How'd you sleep?"

"Feliz Natal! And, um, pretty good. How'd I end up on the couch?"

"You dozed off watching TV, and we didn't want to wake you, so we put you on the couch for the night."

"Oh. Well thanks. Mmm, what smells so good?"

"I made waffles."

Licking her lips, AJ jumped up off the sofa, slipped her shoes on, and reached the kitchen table just as Devon set a plate of waffles in front of her. "Awesome, you're too good to me," she said with a grin. "So where are Chuck and Ellie?"

"Still asleep. It's pretty early."

Nodding, AJ tasted her waffles. "Bro, these are delicious. What's in them, blueberries and raspberries?"

"Blackberries too."

"Genius," AJ said. "So tell me, what's Christmas with the Bartowskis like?"

"It's awesome—it's usually just the three of us and the little bearded man, except for two years ago when we went to my parents' house."

Something about the way Awesome said it made AJ want to know more. "And how'd that go?"

"It was alright," he said as he took a seat next to AJ with his own plate of pancakes.

"Alright? For you, that's like saying it was dreadful."

"That's because it was," Ellie said as she walked into the kitchen. "Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas, babe," Devon said, jumping up to give her a good morning kiss and serve her breakfast.

"Joyeux Noël, El. So, why was it so bad? Do you and the future in-laws not get along?"

Ellie shook her head. "It's not that, it's just that Woody and Honey—" She was cut off by AJ choking on her waffles, and hastily passed her the orange juice. "Are you okay?"

After gulping down some juice, AJ said, "Yeah, m'fine." Turning to Awesome, she asked, "Sorry, but your parents' names are _Woody_ and _Honey_?"

He shrugged. "A bad nickname builds character."

Not sure of how to respond to that, AJ turned back to Ellie instead. "So I'm going to go home after breakfast to shower and change and whatnot; I should be back here around two. Do you need me to bring anything over?"

"No, I think I've got everything. Oh except, do you have any pecans?"

"Um not sure. But if I don't, Beth definitely should, so I'll drop in and ask her for some on my way over."

"Great!"

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Let us know what you thought! Please please review, it's chocolate and candy to us. ((LB would just like to say that reviews are more than just chocolate and candy-they are like John Casey...superly Awesome and darn delightful!))


	3. Christmas in Burbank: Part 2

Hello dear readers! LB here with the disclaimer and author's not tidbit-this is the next part of Christmas in Burbank, shorter than usual, I realize, but it was a good place to stop, and there's still lots left on CIB. Let's see, I own Beth; my awesome wonderful writing buddy lifeislikeaboxofbertiebotts owns AJ, and...don't sue us, because for one, we're poor, and for another, we don't own Chuck. Thank you for reading, and if you haven't read our other pieces, check them out (or else this will probably not make much sense).

Enjoy!

* * *

Beth woke up Christmas morning incredibly early. She couldn't help it—from her childhood, the ache to wake up at o-dark-thirty was engrained into her being. She'd always run to wake up her parents and spend hours poring over her gifts. Well, the only thing she was pouring this morning was a huge cup of coffee. She made her way into the living room and curled up on the couch, watching the Christmas tree. She didn't bother turning on any other lights—the Christmas tree lit up the room, and she figured John needed his sleep. It was her favorite season, Christmas was. It was a time when joy and hope were in the air. Lord, in her profession, she needed a lot of that sometimes. She was going for round two on the coffee when she heard rustling in the living room. Assuming it was John, she poured another cup of coffee and headed back to the tree. She paused in the doorway to watch the scene for a moment.

He had sat down at the couch, legs stretched in front of him. She didn't know what he was thinking—he, too, must have felt the sense of peace she did from sitting in the presence of the tree. Wordlessly, she took a seat next to him and passed him his coffee. He nodded his thanks, and they both were content to sit in silence, lost in their thoughts, the only sound coming from the still-percolating coffee maker.

John's thoughts remained a mystery, but Beth's all revolved around the man sitting not even a foot away. She had sat down on the middle cushion; every once and awhile, their arms would brush. She knew in her heart, she was growing attached. Hell, there was no 'growing' about it; she was falling for John Casey. It wasn't for his endearing personality; he could be an ole' grouch when he wanted to be, full of sarcasm and harsh words. But he was kind when it mattered, and, truth be told, his blunt personality _was_ endearing. Maybe only to her, but it was. And…

"Merry Christmas."

John's voice, practically a whisper, interrupted my inner tangent. Beth looked up at him and gave a smile. "Merry Christmas yourself. Sleep well?"

He nodded curtly. "You?"

"Wonderfully."

At his raised eyebrow, she realized, considering the time…he probably thought she woke up to bake. "I really did. I always wake up this early on Christmas. There's something to be said about being able to sit down and just…bask in the season's warmth. Though, being here…it's a little more depressing. There's no snow."

She closed her eyes, resting against John's shoulder. She thought he would move, but he didn't. "You know, I can almost see it—the way the snow covers the hills, and the lights that twinkle from afar…sorry," She opened her eyes again, quickly blinking her eyes so he wouldn't see the tears that had started. "I got lost in memories for a second there."

He did notice the tears, but he didn't say anything, seeming to understand it was just part of what made Beth, Beth. Silence settled again, and he drank his coffee, watching Beth out of the corner of his eye. She was a strange one—never quite making sense, and constantly surprising him. She was feisty—that much was apparent when she had no qualms about slapping him. But she kept that side mostly hidden, as if it was a dangerous piece no one should know about. John inwardly disagreed; she appeared too soft at times, making it all too easy for just anyone to walk over her.

"So, when do you want breakfast?" Looking over at John, she had noticed he, too, had zoned out in a way. He gave a noncommittal grunt, and she shook her head.

"That's not an answer, John Casey, and you know it. I've told you countless times…you have to speak in more than a grunt; I still don't have them all numbered. Now, as for breakfast, I was thinking…"

"—I'll cook."

"Um, but…"

"Don't trust my cooking, Tulip?"

"No. I mean, yes. Er, I mean, yes, I do trust your cooking. I was caught by surprise, so I didn't answer right away. But you really should be resting. Cooking means standing on your feet, and maybe you shouldn't since,"

"—It's a toe, not a leg."

Beth shook her head. "But…"

"No arguments. I cook breakfast. Then we'll go to that Christmas party."

She looked slightly surprised. She didn't really expect him to go. Granted, she'd bossed him into going, but she kinda expected him to 'mysteriously disappear' before they could leave. "You're…not backing out? You'll really come with me?"

"Only if you'll stop acting like I'm about to break."

Beth shook her head. "You drive one helluva bargain, but…I can try. I can't say I will, because I have a tendency to be overbearing with those I care about."

Only too late did Beth realize what she'd said. But it was early, maybe he didn't notice. He probably didn't. And it wasn't like she said she was irrevocably in love with him; she merely 'cared'. In any case, she couldn't worry herself too much over it—she couldn't afford to; she still had to fix food for the party. And get ready.

"Anyway, I say you cook breakfast; I get ready—then we switch? Unless you want some help…"

John shook his head. "Better off without you in the kitchen, trying to command everything."

"Just because I like to have an organized kitchen…"

"Go."

She stuck her tongue out at him, but got up to get ready. Sooner she got ready, the sooner she got breakfast and the sooner the Christmas party would come around.

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Let us know what you think-we'd much appreciate it!


	4. Christmas in Burbank: Part 3

A/N: Hey-o! This is AC, co-pilot for this story here with the usual disclaimer & such. 1st off, good news- we're almost done writing this particular co-op! Now, lemme see, I own AJ, LB owns Beth, & NBC owns everyone else, unfortunately. Thanks for the awesome reviews & support, & don't forget to check out the other 2 parts of this series, CVTCS: Beth & CVTCS: AJ; it'd make understanding this story a whole lot easier. Enjoy!

* * *

As a rule of thumb, AJ wasn't much for dressing up, generally choosing comfort over style, but she always made a point of looking her best for Christmas. After her shower, she dressed in a newly bought strapless green dress, closed red heels, and some of her nicest jewelry—matching white gold moon earrings, necklace, and bracelet. She ran a straightener through her hair so that her general mess of brunette locks for once looked neat and orderly; more so when she pulled her hair back into a bun, leaving just enough hair loose to frame her face.

She had just finished applying some lipstick when her cell phone rang, playing the opening lines of a Lady Antebellum song.

"Hey, Beth. Fröhliche Weihnachten!"

_"Merry Christmas to you too! Listen, Ellie just called to say you needed some pecans, do you want me to come drop them off?"_

"Yeah, that'd be perfect thanks."

_"No problem, I'll be there in a lil while."_

"Sounds good."

Hanging up the phone, she continued getting ready until there was a knock on the door. Assuming it was Beth, she pulled the door open without much thought and stopped when she realized it wasn't Beth at all, but actually Morgan.

"Whoa," he said in greeting, looking her up and down.

"Hey, Morgan, my eyes are up here. Hi. Buone Feste Natalizie."

"Oh, hi, Merry Christmas. You look great."

AJ smiled. "Thanks. So, any reason you're here instead of raiding the Bartowskis' pantry?"

"Well, I was wondering if I could ask your advice on something."

"Sure, come on in. I was just finishing getting ready."

He took a seat on the couch while AJ threw some extra makeup into a purse, then came and sat down next to him. "So what's wrong?"

"It's Anna, man; she's cheating on me with Lester!"

"The way I heard it, it was just a kiss," AJ said.

He nodded reluctantly. "That I know of for sure. But, c'mon, if they're kissing like that, it's because there's something there, right?"

AJ shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. Things did get pretty wild yesterday after all. I think you should talk to her about it before assuming the worst."

"Okay, thanks. I'm going to call her right now—"

"No!"

He tilted his head to one side. "Why not?"

"Um, because you're mad and she's mad and you both need to cool down before you can have an honest and productive conversation," AJ improvised. "Better to wait a few days, maybe until after New Year's and talk then."

"You think?"

"Definitely."

He nodded. "Okay. Oh, by the way, I ran into Beth on the way over here, she told me to give you these." He pulled a bag of pecans out of his pocket, slightly smashed but still edible, and handed them over.

"Oh good, that means we can head over to the Bartowskis' then; I promised Ellie I'd help with dinner. Let's go." Standing, AJ held out her arm to Morgan playfully, and was surprised when he actually accepted it.

They remained with their arms linked all the way across the courtyard, but pulled apart before knocking at Casa Bartowski. Ellie let them in, and AJ was surprised to find Morgan following her and Ellie into the kitchen.

"How can I help?" he asked before AJ could.

Both girls shot him a curious look. "You cook?" AJ asked.

He nodded. "Dude, have you never tried my paella?"

"Um, no. But now we're going to have to."

Ellie nodded. "So, I'm going to take care of the pecan sauce for the chicken and the mashed potatoes, why don't you two start on the pasta?" She passed over the recipe and excused herself for a moment to go make sure Devon and Chuck had everything else handled for the evening.

"Alright, Morgan, you probably know your way around this kitchen better than I do. So how about I read out the ingredients and you set them out?"

Once everything was set out and Ellie had returned, Morgan got to work mixing the Alfredo sauce while AJ got the noodles on the stove. As they worked, Morgan asked her, "So where were you this time last year?"

"Um, let's see. I was in…Tokyo. Gran flew over like she always did for the holidays and we spent the week traveling Japan. It was really interesting; I don't speak a lick of Japanese, so we had to rely on a translator, who kept hitting on Gran."

"Finally, a language you don't speak," Morgan teased.

AJ stuck her tongue out at him. "I don't know that many fluently, just bits and pieces of a lot of them. But I've never had an ear for East Asian languages."

"Well, at any rate I'm glad you here with us this year," Ellie said.

"I am too; it'll be nice to enjoy a home cooked Christmas dinner for once."

Morgan nodded. "And it smells delicious. Pasta's done, Ellie, do you need help with anything else?"

She shot Morgan an incredulous look. "In all the years you've celebrated Christmas with us, this is the first year you ever volunteered to help."

"That's not true!"

"Sorry, buddy, but it is," Chuck called from the living room.

Chuckling, AJ patted him on the back and said, "It's alright, Morgan, how about we set out the silverware? You do folks and napkins and I'll do spoons and knives."

They started at the head of the table and went in opposite directions around the table, setting everything up. Caught up in their jobs, when they reached the foot of the table they bumped right into each other, headfirst.

"Ow." "Umph."

Their faces unnaturally close to one another, both shared a nervous laugh before pulling apart at the ringing of the doorbell.

"Showtime," AJ said.

Beth stood at the door, holding tight to John's hand. Her excuse was she was making sure he wasn't going to dart away. Inwardly, she wasn't so sure if it was that or if she liked the feel of his hand in hers'. But he hadn't tried to take his hand back, so that must have meant something, right? She didn't have time to debate it further, though, because the door opened and Ellie ushered them in.

"We're so glad you both could make it! Morgan and AJ are setting the table, Devon's doing heavens-knows-what, and Chuck's getting drinks. What would you two like?"

"Just punch for us both—John shouldn't drink with the meds he's on."

"Ignore her; I'll have scotch, if you have any."

"He will _not. _Drinking while on medication is bad for your health."

"Good thing I didn't take the meds, then."

Beth sputtered. "You didn't, but you, I, you, John Casey! I _told_ you to take them!"

"Didn't need 'em."

"Why you! I don't care how strong of a manly man you are or think you are, you should have taken those pills! They're meant to help you, and just because you want a scotch with your dinner doesn't mean…"

As their arguing continued, neither of them noticed the knowing glance Ellie shot at their entwined hands, which, she noted, stayed attached as they walked into the apartment. John only let go of Beth's hand to grab their drinks; meanwhile, Morgan and AJ had left the dining room to greet their newest guests.

"Hey, Beth, you're right on time," AJ said, giving her a one-armed hug. "Casey, good to see you on your feet," she added as an afterthought.

"Yeah, how's your toe?" Chuck asked, looking guilty.

Casey answered with a menacing growl, so Beth grabbed and squeezed his hand in warning. "Apparently he's feelin' well enough not to take his meds."

Before there could be further discussion of Casey's missing toe, there was another knock on the door and Sarah arrived. The group complete, Ellie declared it was time for dinner. The gang crowded around Woodcomb's table where Morgan and AJ had set out all the dishes they and Ellie had prepared. Like every other time the whole group ate dinner together, Ellie sat to the left of Devon, who sat at the head of the table. Next to Ellie was AJ, and next to her, Morgan. Across from Ellie sat Casey, and next to him, Beth. Rounding the end out was Sarah, and opposite of Awesome was Chuck. After heaping their plates full of chicken, spaghetti, green beans, and the like, conversation turned towards the holiday season.

"You seem to really love the holidays, Beth, if your hat's any indication," Ellie said with a smile.

Casey guffawed and Beth mock-slapped his arm. "Just because I had to practically force you to put up a tree…and a nativity set. And a wreath. And…"

"The baking?"

"It's not Christmas without cookies! What're you gonna feed Santa?" She ignored John's eye roll and addressed the rest of the gang. "Where I grew up, Christmas was a huge. It was a time of family and friends and visitin' and bakin' and general merrymaking. It's my favorite holiday."

"It's my favorite holiday too," Ellie agreed. "Dad used to always go all out with the decorations, do you remember, Chuck?"

"I remember almost falling off the roof when I was seven, helping him put up the Christmas lights," Chuck said with a laugh. "What about you, Casey, what do you remember about Christmas when you were a kid?"

"…Decorating Christmas cookies."

If anyone was surprised Casey offered up something so candid, they didn't say it.

"What about you, AJ?" Devon asked after a moment. "What were your childhoods Christmases like?"

She shrugged. "Quiet."

"How come?" Morgan asked. Seeing the look on her face, he backtracked slightly. "If you don't want to talk about it, AJ, that's okay."

"No, it's fine. Mother always threw a big party for Father's clients; I always spent the night hiding out in my room. If I got lucky, one of the maids would slip me some custard."

"Custard? That's _all_ you ate for supper?"

AJ shrugged again, and Beth shook her head. "That's terrible! Not a kind of supper at all! What kind of parents did you—those _assholes_." Realizing what she'd said, she apologized. "Sorry, I just…parents like them…they…irritate me. It's ridiculous. Reminds me of this one time—"

"Beth, it's not story time."

"Hush up, John, this story has a point. Now, where was I? Right—reminds me of this time Daddy was called to rescue this kitten. Y'see, this cat had a litter of kittens, but the lil'est one didn't get a lot of love and affection—he was scrawny and lame in one leg, so the other siblings picked on him. And the mama already had seven of eight babies, so the kit didn't have anybody to take care of it. He was neglected and unloved. But then Daddy took him home, and we bottle fed him, and he grew up to be one of the best cats we ever had. His environment didn't allow for him to grow, but once he was put in a place where he was loved and cared for, he flourished."

AJ smiled. "A toast then, to being in a good environment for the holidays, with friends old and new. Cheers."

Glasses clinked together and the dinner continued with all sorts of chit chat about this and that. Eventually, the topic of conversation turned to what had happened at the Buy More, and how the half of the guests who worked there really should consider finding a safer place to work.

"It's an electronics store, sis; it's not exactly dangerous."

"Not dangerous? There was a man waving a gun around! Casey lost a toe."

The aforementioned man growled. "Sorry, John, I know it's a sore subject."

Beth bit her lip, and the table could hear her mumble under her breath, "Probably a sore toe. Or lack thereof."

"Anyway, after what happened yesterday, you can't argue that it's safe," Ellie concluded.

Sarah and Beth exchanged a look.

"What happened could've happened anywhere, Ellie," Sarah said finally. "He could have just as easily run into the Orange Orange or the hospital or anywhere else."

"Sarah's right, Ellie. Besides, after what happened, I'm sure the Buy More will implement protective procedures to ensure something like that doesn't happen again. Right, John?"

Beth glanced over at John, giving him a 'make this situation better' look. "Beth's right. The perimeter will be watched closely, as will the potential perps. They'll probably install EB-52s and their own set of DW85s."

Ellie raised an eye, and Beth sighed in exasperation. "John, next time speak in non-Marine talk—not all of understand what that heck those are. Now, what he means to say is that Buy More will probably install a better security system—EB-52s are a type of recording video device and DW85s are a sort of…actually, what are DW85s?"

"Aren't they a sort of catch-all audio system?"

John raised an eye at Morgan. "Maybe you're not a moron, moron."

"Thanks, Casey," Morgan said, not at all offended.

* * *

LB here, just wanting to throw in a big THANK YOU! for all our readers and reviewers-knowing y'all like the story is one of the greatest feelings on the planet. So let us know whatcha think. Oh, by the way, EB-52s and DW85s are completely fictional to my knowledge (I pretty much just stared at the keys and started choosing combinations at random). So, that's it; we'll have the next part up soon. Reviews make us smile. :) Much love!


	5. Christmas in Burbank: Part 4

Hi guys, LB here. So here's part four of Christmas in Burbank. The good news is, we're done with this piece, so it's just a matter of posting them! :) As usual, Beth is mine, AJ is AC's, and the rest of Chuck is sadly, not ours'.

Enjoy!

* * *

After a scrumptious dessert of coconut crème pie, the group moved to the living room to open presents. Taking a seat on the floor, Chuck and Morgan were in charge of passing the presents out. Devon sat in the armchair closest to the tree with Ellie in his lap, while Sarah, AJ, and Beth took up the couch. Casey sat in the other armchair closest to Beth.

"Okay, so let's see. Who's this yellow one from and who's it for?" Chuck asked, holding up a present.

"Mine for Beth," Casey answered.

Beth shot a surprised look towards him. She hadn't expected any presents from him. Morgan passed it over to Beth, and she grinned. The yellow wrapping paper practically matched the walls of her room, and she had a feeling that had been done on purpose. She stared at it, and tried to rattle it, but it didn't make a noise.

John scoffed. "Gonna open it or just play detective?"

Sticking her tongue out at him, she went about unwrapping the present. It was…a box. How lovely. After finally getting into the box (did the man use a whole roll of tape for that thing?), she let out a gasp of surprise.

"It's gorgeous!"

"What'd you get?" Ellie asked.

AJ nodded. "Yeah, hold it up, let us see!"

She held up a dress; it was white with pink polka dots and a blue underskirt and bows.

Devon let out a low whistle. "Good choice bro."

"It'll look great on you, Beth."

"Thanks Sarah. I love the coloring." She turned towards John. "Thank you so much—I love it! I didn't expect any presents really; this is, it's…thank you."

He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "There's another part of the gift—look under the tissue paper."

"Oh! Really? Oh-okay." She started to dig through the paper, coming up with an assortment of ribbon. "New ribbon! You're officially amazing and my favorite man ever!"

Ellie smiled knowingly and if she didn't know any better, she could have sworn Casey looked pleased at that outburst. Beth didn't notice—she was too busy gushing over her present. The next gift held up was a messily wrapped and oddly shaped package covered in Frosty the snowmen wrapping paper.

Looking at the gift Morgan was holding, Chuck said, "Oh that's mine for you, Devon."

"Awesome," he said, accepting the gift. He pulled away the wrapping with a surgeon's hands, taking his time with each piece of tape so as not to tear it. When he finally opened it, he revealed a small cardboard box sitting on top of a DVD. Looking at the DVD first, Devon read aloud, "Original and Uncommon Workout Routines from Around the World. Thanks, bro!"

"Cool," AJ said as Devon passed the video around. "I bet the Tibetan Turnover's in there; does wonders for your back."

"Just as long as he stops hanging upside down from the ceiling," Ellie said.

When the video had finished circling, Devon opened the second part of his present and pulled out a personalized cobalt blue mug that read in a white script 'Most Awesome Brother-in-law'.

"Aw, this deserves a hug," Devon said, causing Ellie to jump up from his lap so that he could go over to the tree and pull Chuck into a hug.

"Glad you liked it," Chuck said, massaging his bruised ribs. "So, who next? How about this one?" He held a small green gift bag topped with a perfectly centered red bow.

"That's mine bro, goes to my lady love."

Ellie, settled back in Devon's lap, took the bag gently. She took the tissue paper out first, and held up a small envelope.

Devon's hands inched toward the powder blue envelope. "Open it up, El. You're gonna love it!"

Smacking his hands away, she carefully opened the envelope to reveal a day pass to one of the better spas in the Burbank area. "Oh honey, I've wanted to go here for awhile! How'd you know?"

"Saw one of their brochures lying around the house. Now—"

"—I'm getting there Devon. Patience is a virtue." She took out the remaining item in the bag: a large bottle of her favorite perfume. She turned in her place to give him a kiss. "I've been running out—your gift is awesomely wonderful."

"Thanks babe, I'm glad you like it."

They shared another kiss, and Morgan grabbed the closest present to him, in order to stop the gushy scene. The package was a sturdy box wrapped in silver paper except for a spot on the top of the package, which had what looked to be newspaper taped over a part of the package.

"This is from me to Casey," he said, passing he package down the room. The aforementioned Colonel raised an eyebrow, obviously surprised, but didn't comment. He pulled the wrapping off without fuss, exposing a bottle of car polish sitting on top of a flat box. Opening the box without preamble, Casey pulled out a boomerang.

"What's this supposed to be for?" he said holding it up.

"Don't you get it, man? It's for you to use on shoplifters!"

"Buddy, that's actually pretty ingenious," Chuck said. The others signaled their agreement.

"That was really thoughtful of you, Morgan," Beth said. "Wasn't it, John?"

Casey nodded slowly. "Thanks…Grimes."

Looking quite pleased with himself, Morgan picked out the next present, a medium-sized package neatly wrapped in purple paper with sparkly red candy canes and green Christmas trees.

Ellie waved her hand at the package. "That's mine, Morgan. For AJ."

It didn't escape the others' notice that instead of just passing the package to the next person like a crazy game of telephone, like Morgan did with the others, he walked over to AJ and gave it to her, their hands accidently brushing during the exchange. Watching it, Beth smirked—she saw the way AJ had jumped slightly at the touch; the girl was head over heels. She just didn't realize it yet.

AJ took the bow off gently, and stuck it on top of her head. Then she tore into the package.

"Merci beaucoup!" she remarked as she held up the books Ellie had gotten her. "_1001 Ways to Spice up your Pasta._ I'll be using this quite a bit. And what's this one…_100 Unusual Places around LA: A Book for the Brave and the Daring_. Intéressant…thanks Ellie!"

"You're welcome. I thought you'd like to travel some around California, since most of your traveling has been out-of-country."

"It's great! Very useful." She stated skimming the pages while Chuck picked up the next gift—a small rectangular gift wrapped in a quilt-like pattern of Santas with a polka dot bow.

"Alright, so whose is this?"

No one answered.

"Um, guys, it has to be somebody's."

Looking up from her books, AJ said, "Oh sorry, that's mine for Morgan."

Morgan accepted the gift from Chuck and wasted no time in tearing away the paper. "Oh wow, _no way_." He looked from the Wii game in his hand to AJ and then back again. "This _can't _be the new _Call of Duty_ game; it hasn't even officially been announced yet."

AJ shrugged, her smile mysterious and satisfied. "I met Josh Olin at a convention in Japan; we hit it off and I offered him a couple of suggestions for modifying the franchise. I convinced him to send me an advanced copy as a thank you; it wasn't big deal."

"This is the best present I've ever gotten," Morgan said sincerely, hugging the game to his chest.

AJ hid herself behind her new books to keep the others from noticing the steady reddening of her cheeks.

Clearing his throat, Chuck pulled out another present, a bright silver gift bag adorned with snowflakes, with the top rolled and taped to keep it from coming open.

Grinning, Beth practically leapt in her seat. "That's mine! Sarah, it's for you, and good luck opening it—I used heavy duty tape."

Sarah examined the package for a few seconds, shrugged, then flipped it over and started taking the bag apart from the bottom.

"Hey! That's cheating!"

"You didn't say how I was supposed to unwrap it." The bag fell open to show a pair of elegant silver hoops and a manila envelope. Looking at it curiously, she opened the envelope and a comic book slid out.

"_Detective Comic 27!_"

Beth smirked at Sarah's uncharacteristic squeal. Chuck practically leapt over the presents to get to Sarah.

"You're joking right? You have to be joking. The original was made in 1939—there's no way you can have an original…hey-o! That's an original!"

"Where did you find it?"

Grinning, Beth shrugged. "A great gift-giver never reveals her secrets."

"But it must have cost—"

"—Morgan, isn't it time for the next gift?"

Morgan nodded, and grabbed a heavy box wrapped in scarlet paper with gold ribbon.

"That's for you, Chuck," Sarah said.

"It is? Hmm, wonder what it could be?" He grabbed the box from Morgan, weighing it with a thoughtful expression on his face. "Could it be…actually, I have no idea. So I'm just going to open it now." He unwrapped the box and pulled the lid off, then took out a photo album, the cover picture being one of him and Sarah on Halloween.

"Sarah, these are all—"

"Pictures of us. Of all of us. I couldn't think of what to get you, so—"

"This is amazing; thank you." Chuck jumped, giving his girlfriend a kiss before looking through the rest of the album, holding it up at certain points for everyone to see one picture or another.

* * *

There we go! Like it? Hate it? What'd you guys think about the gifts? Feeback is always welcome!

(AC here. Just wanted to let you know, the Tibetan Turnover is completely fictional so far as I know, & Josh Olin really is associated with COD...but we don't own him. Pity too, he's kinda cute.)


	6. Christmas in Burbank: Part 5

A/N: Hey-o, this is AC, with the next part of CIB for y'all. Thanks so much for the Awesome reviews & the usual disclaimers apply: AJ's mine, Beth is LB's, & anything else you recognize is, well, not ours. Enjoy!

* * *

The gift giving continued for a while longer, and then Ellie declared it time for gingerbread cookies and karaoke to close out the night.

"C'mon, Ellie, can't we do something else this year?" Morgan said. "You know I can't sing!"

"We _cannot._ It's tradition!"

Beth and Sarah exchanged looks. "Christmas Karaoke?"

Chuck elaborated, "We got a new karaoke system for Christmas a few years ago and since then it's become tradition to pull the old machine out and sing a few tunes. Don't worry; it'll be fun."

Chuck setup the system, then asked the room at large, "So who's going first?"

Casey glared around the room, while Sarah made sure not to make eye contact with anyone. AJ looked to Chuck, who turned to Beth, who in turn looked at Morgan. Morgan looked at everyone looking back, and asked, "What?"

"Well buddy, someone's gotta start singing; since you've done it before, why don't you start?"

He shrugged his shoulder and grabbed the mike. "Alright, prepare to be amazed!"

AJ watched him strut around the living room as part of his 'warm-up'. "What song are you choosing?"

"Hmmm, I don't know. How about you just hit 'random', Chuck?"

Chuck did as he was told, and everyone watched the machine processing the request, stopping on 'I've Got You Babe.'

Eyes wide, Morgan said, "I can't sing that! It's a duet!"

"No problem," Beth said, shoving AJ forward. "AJ can sing with you."

AJ blushed red. "But-but-I don't know the words!"

"Words are on screen, Abbott."

AJ shot a half-glare at Casey while Beth chimed in.

"John's right—don't worry, you two will do great!"

Cursing God, Allah, Zeus, and whatever other deities she thought of, she took a breath and turned towards Morgan. "Well Morgan, or should I call you Sonny?"

"Ready when you are, Cher," he said.

AJ nodded for Chuck to start the song, and started mumbling the opening lines, "They say we're young and we don't know, we won't find out until we grow—"

"—well I don't know if all that's true, 'cause you got me, and baby I got you," Morgan continued, his eyes fixed on the screen. "Babe—"

Turning to Morgan, AJ joined in, "I got you babe, I got you babe."

Jolted by the other's encouraging cheers, AJ went on with a bit more confidence, "They say our love won't pay the rent, before it's earned, our money's all been spent—"

Picking up steam, Morgan sang louder, "I guess that's so, we don't have a pot, but at least I'm sure of all the things we got. Babe—"

"I got you babe," they both sang loudly, now grinning at the absurdity of it all. "I got you babe!"

They finished the rest of the song in the same fashion, holding hands and taking a bow after the song ended.

"So, since this duet was your idea," AJ said, "Beth and Casey next."

Casey growled, but Beth jumped up. "Bring it on!" Grabbing Casey by the hand, she all but pulled him in front of the screen.

AJ nudged Sarah. "Someone's a bit excited," she said with a wink.

"That's for sure. Though," she said in a whisper, "Casey doesn't look to be complaining."

"Hey Beth, what song will you guys sing?"

She shrugged at Morgan's question. "Any preference, John?"

He grunted. "Nope. Don't care."

"Alright then…let's see…oh! That one!"

Chuck stopped on the song with some confusion. "Baby's got her Blue Jeans On?"

"No, the one after that—Baby It's Cold Outside. Granted, Baby's got her Blue Jeans On is a great song, but it's not a duet. That alright with you, sugar?"

He grunted in approval, and Chuck started the song. Beth started to dance with the introductory notes, while Casey rolled his eyes.

"I really can't stay—" John's voice joined in, "—Baby, it's cold outside."

"I've got to go away—""—Baby, it's cold outside."

"This evening has been—""—been hoping you'd drop in."

"—so very nice," "I'll hold your hands, they're just like ice."

Beth grinned; the song was the perfect choice for John's voice. Did she find it a little humorous it was technically a seductive Christmas song sung between roommates? A bit. Her voice was clear, and with Casey's strong baritone voice chiming in, the rendition was decent. They sang the second verse through until the instrumental interlude happened. No one, not even Beth, expected it when John uncharacteristically yet masterfully spun her around. After letting out a gasp of surprise, she danced 30's style with John and because of it, almost missed the next intro. Beth snatched a drink of water during the second dance break, with Casey coming into the song at, "Brr, it's cold,"

"It's cold out there," Beth echoed.

"Can't you stay awhile longer baby?"

"Well…I really shouldn't, but…alright,"

Beth couldn't help but notice how rich John's voice was as he sang, "Make it worth your while baby," and couldn't help but silently agree with the last line of the song as she sang, "Ah, do that again."

Neither seemed to notice they had moved closer as they sang the song, both of them ending the song looking and singing to each other, rather than the lyrics onscreen. Sarah's slow clapping brought them back. The rest of the team joined in, and Beth curtsied while John grunted.

"Alright, Sarah, since you started the clapping, you and Chuck can sing next. Don't give me that sick look—it's just karaoke. Have fun with it!"

She accepted the microphone from Beth without comment, and signaled for Chuck to pick the song.

Shuffling through the selections, Chuck picked out a song, then moved to stand next to Sarah and wait for it to start. Beth noted he wasn't standing quite as close to Sarah as he usually did.

The title of the song, "The Time of my Life" flashed on the screen before Chuck started off the song strongly, "Now I've had the time of my life, no I never felt like this before, yes I swear it's the truth, and I owe it all to you—"

He turned to Sarah, in time to hear her sing, "'Cause I've had the time of my life, and I owe it all to you," with an undeniable sincerity in her voice.

Stepping a bit closer to her, Chuck sang on, "I've been waiting for so long, now I've finally found someone, to stand by me—"

"We saw the writing on the wall, as we felt this magical fantasy—"

"Now with passion in our eyes, there's no way we could disguise it secretly, so we take each other's hand, 'cause we seem to understand the urgency—" As they sang, Chuck and Sarah really did take each other's hand, making the girls smile and Casey grunt in disgust.

They held hands throughout the rest of the song, and when they reached the final chorus they both leaned into each other. "'Cause I had the time of my life, and I've searched through every open door, till I've found the truth, and I owe it all to you," they whispered to one another, ending the song with a kiss.

When they remembered they weren't alone, Sarah said hastily, "Ellie, Devon, your turn."

Devon and Ellie both stepped up with the same eagerness. "Alright babe, are you ready to make this awesome?"

"Always. Chuck, we'll be singing "Islands in the Stream".

"Isn't that a sung by the woman with really huge—"

"Eyes! That's what you meant, isn't it, John?" Beth said with a slight nudge to the ribs. He grunted, and Beth elaborated. "Islands in the Stream, number one karaoke duet—originally sung by Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton. Arguably the best duet they've ever done." At the others' looks, she grinned bashfully. "Sorry, it's country. And if I know one thing, it's country music."

"Awesome," Awesome commented while readying his mike. "Ready babe?"

"Always."

The music started, and Awesome's voice resonated around the room, "Baby, when I met you there was peace unknown, I set out to get you with a fine tooth comb, I was soft inside, there was somethin' going on,"

The gang's mouths collectively dropped; well, Morgan and Chuck's did. Sarah's eyes rose in a 'what the heck' gesture and AJ was biting her knuckles to keep from laughing. Casey, as a former choir boy, winced, and Beth bit her lip—she wasn't sure whether to laugh or to cry. Awesome was decidedly unawesome with is singing—his tone was flat, and his voice wavered. Ellie joined in, singing in harmony with Devon, "You do something to me that I can't explain, hold me closer and I feel no pain, every beat of my heart, we got somethin' goin' on."

Then Awesome sang, "Tender love is blind, it requires a dedication," Ellie joined, "Needs no conversation, we ride it together, ah-ah, makin' love with each other, ah-ah"

Both sang, "Islands in the stream, that is what we are, no one in-between, how can we be wrong, sail away with me to another world and we rely on each other, ah-ah, from one lover to another, ah-ah."

They continued the song, Ellie's light soprano overtaking Devon's off-pitch tenor. Even though he couldn't carry a tune in a bucket, the sincerity of his words couldn't be questioned. They shared a secret smile while singing, and when the song was over, happily kissed.

"Ellie, I didn't know you had such a nice voice," Beth commented to Ellie as they took their places around the living room.

AJ murmured to Morgan just out of the others' earshot. "I didn't know Awesome had such an unawesome voice."

"I'd blocked it out from last year," he admitted quietly. "I'm not sure, but I think he might have actually gotten worse."

* * *

LB here to say...let us know whatcha thought! :) Reviews are like music to our ears!


	7. Christmas in Burbank: Part 6

LB here...and here it is! The last part of Christmas in Burbank! I hope you guys have enjoyed reading about this Christmas adventure as much as AC and I have had writing it. First, thanks all of you for reading and reviewing! Second, if you haven't, please read Chuck versus the Chuckless Summer: Beth and Chuck versus the Chuckless Summer: AJ. Third (because there's always a third): As of now, our next co-op on the schedule is our full-length piece on Chuck's episode Versus the Ring, which is turning out to be an enormous piece...it will come to y'all in many parts as well. That's all I have to say, so

Enjoy!

* * *

Since everyone had gotten to sing once, and no one really wanted to suffer through Devon singing again, Ellie suggested it was time for the gingerbread cookies and asked Beth if she could help her get them. Beth happily agreed, and they headed to the kitchen.

"Alright, how ya wanna do this? You grab the plates and cookies I grab the milk?"

"Sounds perfect." Beth grabbed the cups and started pouring the milk, while Ellie hunted up some paper plates.

"Beth?"

She looked up at the sound of Ellie's voice. A question was gonna be asked; she could tell.

"I know you're still relatively new in town, but I was wondering, will you be one of my bridesmaids? It's only logical—you, Sarah, and AJ are the girls I spend the most—"

Beth didn't let her finish. With a squeal of joy, she launched herself at Ellie for a huge hug. "I'd love to! I'm really honored you thought to ask me."

"Thank you. It means so much to me."

They shared a smile together. Words didn't need to be said; the two women understood each other. Weddings were a time of fun and festivities, yes, but it was a time to rely on others to help you out. Having your closest girlfriends there to see you through it—that was a big part of the celebration. Beth knew Ellie's mom and dad were out of the picture; having her friends there would mean a lot to her. Eyes shining, she grabbed the tray the drinks were on and they headed to the living room, chatting all the way.

The cookies didn't last long; Morgan devoured them like a starved animal and Chuck was hardly any better. AJ ended up dropping one into her glass of milk and Beth and John ended up splitting the last cookie. When the last of the milk had been drunk, the Bartowski siblings went to wash the dishes and AJ volunteered to help bring the plates and cups over from the living room.

She was on her third trip towards the living room when in her haste she ran right into Morgan, who almost dropped the glasses he was carrying.

"Whoops! Sorry, Morgan didn't see you."

Morgan was about to move past AJ when Devon, who had turned towards them at the sound of their crash, said, "Whoa, not so fast, bro. Look up."

She and Morgan both did, as did the others. Mistletoe.

Beth nudged John in the side. "Now that is what my Daddy calls a sight for sore eyes. Morgan, what're ya standin' there for? Ya best be fixin' to kiss her."

Smiling, Sarah agreed. "Beth's right—it's tradition; you have to. Don't be shy, just plant one on her."

AJ turned redder than Beth's Santa hat, and protested, "C'mon guys, isn't this a bit childish?"

"Yeah," Morgan agreed. "We're not even really under the mistletoe. Well, okay, maybe from a certain angle it seems like we are but—"

"Man up, Grimes; kiss her already."

Under the scrutinizing eyes of all of their friends, Morgan and AJ shared a weary look before Morgan planted the lightest of pecks on AJ's cheek, careful not to drop the cups in his hand.

"That doesn't count!" Sarah protested immediately, catching everyone off guard with her outburst. "What? It doesn't."

"She's right," Devon said. "It needs to be on the lips."

AJ opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off by Morgan pressing his lips to hers, his tongue exploring her open mouth, his arms wrapping around her, drinking cups and all. When they parted, both breathless and AJ looking like she had no earthly idea what had just happened, Morgan said to the others, "Happy?"

There was a stunned silence.

After shooting a knowing glance to Sarah, Beth was the first to speak, letting out a low whistle. "Well hell's bells, didn't say ya had to go hog wild, but you certainly did. That kiss was 'bout hotter than two goats in a pepper patch!"

The group gave her a questioning glance, and John shook his head. "Beth."

"Mmm?"

"We aren't in Tennessee."

"Well, yeah, that much is obvious. Cause if we were, I'd actually get some snow on Christmas, and I wouldn't have had to buy our Christmas tree from an import store—we'd have went and chopped one down from the back pasture and—"

"_Beth._"

They shared a look the others couldn't quite comprehend, and she teasingly nudged him with her shoulder. "You know I can't help it—'sides, you also know I make a very good point."

Morgan and AJ were still standing under the mistletoe, the latter turning a pretty shade of pink, while replying, "You're right."

"She is?" "I am?"

"Well, yeah. I mean, over in Large Mart they're using a palm tree for their Christmas tree. How unfestive is that?"

"You're deflecting, Abbott."

Awesome nodded in agreement, "John's right. That was an awesome kiss, AJ." Turning to Morgan, he added, "I didn't know you had the moves, bro."

Morgan opened his mouth to speak but AJ beat him to it. "He does too have the moves!"

It was about that time that Chuck walked out of the kitchen. "Guys, we've only washed three cups—where are the, oh hey buddy, did you know you're standing under the mistletoe? Why...why are looking at me like that? AJ, you're really red, are you okay?"

Stepping out from under the mistletoe with her hands on her hips and her eyes cast downward, AJ mumbled, "Yeah, m'fine."

Morgan handed Chuck the cups in his hand wordlessly. Looking between Morgan and AJ, and then towards the others, Chuck's eyes widened in realization. "Hey-o! Did I miss something?"

"You think?" Casey said, muttering "moron" under his breath before going back to the living room. Beth, Sarah and Devon followed after him, leaving AJ and Morgan to explain to Chuck.

"Well man, you see—"

"Morgan and I got caught under the mistletoe. No big deal," AJ cut in. "Just following through with tradition. I'm gonna go get the rest of the cups now."

She shuffled off to the living room, pressing her hands to her flushed cheeks and talking to herself in French. Chuck looked at Morgan, and Morgan looked at Chuck.

"Ah, buddy? Just what kind of traditional kiss did you give her?"

Morgan didn't answer, and Chuck was left wondering what caused his two childhood friends to act so oddly. Morgan finally shook his head as if to rid himself of something before commenting, "Here, take these glasses to Ellie; I've got to…go to the bathroom."

Before Chuck could refuse or even comment, Morgan was out like a flash of lightning. Shrugging his shoulders, he delivered the glasses and helped Ellie wash them—after AJ delivered her glasses, she too disappeared.

"Christmas has gone so well, hasn't it, Chuck? We haven't had such a crowd since…well, since before Mom and Dad disappeared."

"I know, El. Even Casey's having a good time. Actually, I don't know if he's ever had such a great time at your Sunday dinners before."

She smiled. "Not until Beth came around. They'd make a cute couple, don't you think?"

"What? They...? No, not Beth and Casey! Beth and _Casey?_ I mean, she's so…fun! And he's…not," he finished lamely.

"That's exactly why they'd be perfect for each other."

Chuck shook his head. "I don't know, I can't picture it. Hey, El, do you think there's something going on with Morgan and AJ?"

"Something like what?"

"I don't know; they were both acting kinda weird just now, I guess they had to kiss under the mistletoe or something—"

Ellie fumbled the glass she was washing. "What? Hmmm, well that's an interesting idea I guess, the two of them. They _do_ spend a lot of time together…"

Chuck laughed. "You have to stop playing matchmaker, sis, Morgan and AJ would never work out. Now, c'mon, dishes are all done."

He led the way back to the living room, where the others were all sitting around talking. They both walked in just in time to hear Sarah say, "Before Chuck, I hadn't actually met their family."

"Met their family for what?" Ellie asked while joining Devon on the sofa.

"Whoever I was dating. Normally, the relationship didn't last long enough for me to meet their family."

"We're glad that Chuck's brought you around—you add so much to the family!"

Sarah's smile turned shy. "Thanks, Ellie, that means a lot."

Looking around at the whole group, Ellie said, "It's been really nice to have a big family Christmas again."

"Yeah, this has been great," AJ agreed. "Thanks so much for having us."

Beth nodded, pulling John up with her as she stood. "I second what AJ said. Now I'm sure y'all are gonna want to relax in each other's company for awhile, so John and I are gonna grab our goods and get outta your hair."

As she spoke, she went around the room, hugging everyone goodbye while John grunted in agreement and picked up their Christmas gifts. He stood at the door, holding the door open for Beth. With one last, "Merry Christmas y'all, and y'all have a good night!" she walked out the door with John following.

"I should get going too," Sarah said, standing up. She too hugged everybody, though without the certainty and familiarity in which Beth had, then allowed Chuck to walk her to her car.

When Chuck returned, AJ said, "Guess it's my turn to get going. Morgan, you still staying at my place for the night?"

"Oh…yeah. Let's go."

The pair said their farewells and headed out. Noticing how awfully quiet Morgan was, AJ commented, "So, I've gotta say, you're a pretty great kisser."

He gave a nervous chuckle. "Thanks. Sorry if I caught you off guard, you know, I just got caught up in the moment I guess."

"Don't worry about it, Morgan; every girl dreams about getting kissed under the mistletoe on Christmas."

AJ unlocked her front door and led the way upstairs. When she got to the guestroom doorway she stopped, turned, and planted a soft kiss on Morgan's cheek. "Merry Christmas, Morgan," she said. "Sleep well."

Before he could say anything, she disappeared into her room, leaving him to press a hand to his cheek and mumble back, "you too," to an empty hallway.

Meanwhile, over at the Casey-Daniels place, Beth was putting up her Christmas gifts, singing to herself after changing into pajamas. Because it was Christmas, and what else did you do on Christmas but sing carols and drink hot chocolate and eat cookies? It was a wonderful day; she'd had more fun than she expected. Even John enjoyed himself. She only hoped he didn't notice how…close she had been to him all night. In retrospect, she probably shouldn't have held his hand so much, or been so forward, but she couldn't help it. He made her feel like she was a woman—he was just so masculine. A strong knock on the door distracted her from her train of thoughts.

"John! I thought you'd gone to your room, or bed or, oh, sorry! —Here, come on in. Sit."

She gestured to the bed while turning back to her closet for a second, chatting all the way. "Sorry 'bout the mess; I haven't moved everything out of the way—the presents and Christmas goods have stockpiled. Lemme just move those boxes, and—"

She turned around to see John staring at her. "Um, John?" Reaching up, she fiddled with her necklace, a nervous habit she couldn't seem to break.

He stood then, and she glanced at him, confused. "John? But you just came in the room, aren't you…"

She trailed off when he stepped behind her, hands skimming on her necklace. Breathe, Beth thought, he was just…well, she didn't know what he was doing, but she certainly didn't need to feel her heart leap like a giddy schoolgirl. For one thing, she couldn't like him like that because he didn't like her like that. And—

"Beth."

John's hands were no longer on her neck…and neither was her necklace.

"But, wha—"

"Don't need to hide here; you live here."

The only thing she could think to say was, "Huh?"

"You're home. Don't need the necklace."

"Oh." She absently touched her neck. Without the necklace, she almost felt…bare. It was a strange sense of freedom, not wearing the necklace. It was as if a piece of her sorrow had melted when he had taken the necklace off. She smiled softly, looking up at him.

"Thank you."

He shrugged off her thanks, muttering, "Don't mention it."

"John, don't just shrug it off—you gave me the best Christmas gift this year."

"What, taking off a necklace?"

She shook her head slowly "No, you gave me a place to call home."

* * *

Here it is! Love it? Hate it? Let us know!


	8. Versus the Ring: Part 1

This is AC, really super crazy excited that we're finally going to start posting this drabble! So, I know y'all just want to get reading, but I feel like you deserve to know how massive a project writing this particular co-op was. It took us 5 months, our word count was about 21,000 words, and on a word document, this story was 61 pages long. Basically, it's a novella. And it's got a whole lot of everything. Pumped to read this yet? Then let me get the basic disclaimer (we own nothing except for original characters) & spoiler alert (this is based heavily on Chuck versus the Ring) out of the way, so you can enjoy!

An LB note: I wasn't actually going to post this so soon after posting my last piece of Stars and Stripes, however **someone** *cough* AC *cough* was chompin' at the bit for me to post, so...I gave in. I hope y'all like!

* * *

Holy shieße. Chuck was a spy. Chuck's dad was a spy. Beth and Sarah and Casey were all spies. They were all being reassigned. Morgan was running off to Hawaii with _Anna_. And Ellie and Awesome were getting married. Ho-ly Shieße!

Those thoughts, and many like them, flew through AJ's head as she paced the entryway of her house, simultaneously trying to break in the new heels she'd be wearing as one of Ellie's bridesmaids. Sure, she'd suspected something was going on with Chuck and the others, had even guessed that they worked for the government, and when they'd confirmed her beliefs she'd taken it well enough. But now that Mr. Bartowski had been rescued, and Beth, Sarah, and Casey were all being reassigned, the reality and insanity of it all was beginning to fully set in.

AJ stopped pacing, however, when she heard the front door of Casa Bartowski open, and through the peephole of her door spotted Chuck leaving for work.

"Hey. Chuck! Wait up!"

"Oh hey AJ, I was just going to quit the Buy More, care to join me?"

Now there was an idea. With Chuck and Morgan both quitting (and Casey too she imagined), and Emmett taking over, there really was no reason for AJ to stick around.

"Heck yes! Let's go!"

* * *

Next door, Beth's mind was facing a similar overload. Of course, most of that had to do with a certain tall, dark, and handsome roommate of hers. With the Intersect out of Chuck's head, Operation Bartowski was quickly coming to an end. They would all go their separate ways. She didn't know how to feel about it; admittedly, when she arrived in Burbank, she had hoped it to be a short trip but after everything that had happened…she absently touched the scar on her neck.

It didn't haunt her anymore.

She still wore her pendent outside and around others, but when it was just John in the apartment, she didn't hide her scar. She didn't know what to think of him. He could be so detached, yet he never truly shut her out. Sure, he was as gruff with her as anyone else, but she knew how to read him. He spoke through actions, not words. Like when he baked a breakfast quiche for her birthday, or how he always left the middle cinnamon roll because he knew it was her favorite. She'd miss having someone to come home to.

As if her thoughts had summoned him, he walked through the door. Shuffled actually; he was having trouble holding onto all the bags under his arms. She stepped forward to help him, but he shook his head.

"John, don't be stubborn, let me help you."

"No."

She rolled her eyes and mumbled about him being a stubborn man. He smirked, silently agreeing. Making his way to the table, she began to ask what he had brought home until she sniffed the air. She knew that smell; it was the same aroma that used to greet her every Saturday morning when Jamie and she would take time and go eat breakfast together.

"You picked up Burnt Toast?"

He nodded. "I heard they have good breakfast."

Her eyes widened as she realized the implications. "John, the nearest one's an hour and a half away! You had to have been up at o-dark thirty to be back by now."

He doled out the food, not answering her. Looking down, she saw he had gotten her the triple chocolate pancakes. She literally gasped—he remembered. She had mentioned the restaurant in passing conversation, and never expected a detail like her favorite dish to be remembered. It'd been over a year since she'd had their breakfast; she stopped the ritual once Jamie died, and her mouth watered at the prospect of tasting the molten chocolaty goodness. She laughed as she saw what he had gotten—the blueberry supreme platter. She could have guessed he'd get something normal. Contrary to the restaurant's name, Burnt Toast's food was neither burnt nor toast. They specialized in pancakes and other breakfast breads. She had tried every type of pancake at one point or another, but the triple chocolate had fast become a favorite. She tucked in, savoring the rich delicacy.

After a couple bites, she licked her lips and sighed. "Gotta say, this is the best breakfast I've eaten in quite awhile! So chocolaty and wonderful!"

John chuckled, and raised an eyebrow. "Chocolate's not a breakfast food."

"Au contraire!" She held out the bite of pancake she had been about to eat. "Try it. You may be surprised."

He leaned forward to take the bite, and her heart leapt. What the heck, it wasn't supposed to do that. It was just a bite of pancake. But the way his eyes closed as he savored the bite. How his tongue flicked out to catch the lingering chocolate. No Beth, bad thoughts. You can't have thoughts about your coworker like that. She inwardly shook the thoughts away, and focused back on John, who was still debating the bite of chocolate pancake.

"Well?"

"It's decent."

"What? But it's chocolate!"

"Blueberries are healthier. Mine are better."

"Oh really?" Leaning across the table, she intercepted his fork en route to his mouth. She closed her eyes, moaning softly at sweet yet tangy flavor (that was the secret to the blueberry pancakes; she could tell they added a hint of lemon in their batter). It contrasted nicely with her own chocolate pancakes. When she opened them again, she found herself face-to-face with the fork's owner. Beth nodded at him.

"You're right, they are healthier. And are pretty darn tasty too. But…"

"But what?"

Her heart felt like it would burst from her chest from their closeness. She had to act. No matter where they went, or what happened next, she had to show him how she felt. Had to know if he felt the same. Giving a coy smile, she finally spoke.

"They're better together."

Leaning forward slightly, she brushed her lips against his. It was hesitant, shy. If kisses spoke words, this one would have asked permission. And if John's lips were any indication, he had accepted with great enthusiasm. Hands swept the breakfast plates; Beth was pulled partially over the table toward him. He stood up, moving her so that she was kneeling on the table, eye-to-eye. Not that she was very focused on looking at him, at the moment. Her senses were in overdrive. After all the comments, glances, and suspected innuendos, she was finally kissing him. And he was kissing her back. Nothing else mattered to her. They would be parting in less than forty-eight hours; both knew it. She could already feel it tugging on her heartstrings, but refused to let the sorrow sink in. Whatever happened in the future, she knew she'd never regret kissing Colonel John Casey.

* * *

AC: YES! THEY FINALLY KISSED! *Dances around like a maniac* Yeah, I've definitely been waiting for that as long as you guys have. Anyway...we'd love for you to review & let us know what you think. :) And LB says...well of course they kissed! How could you **not** kiss Colonel John Casey?


	9. Versus the Ring: Part 2

Hi guys, LB here with the next part of VTR! I'm quite excited that AC and I are finally getting to post this, because, as AC has said, it's been a **huge** undertaking! One that is amazing and fun and crazy and emotional, and so we hope you love it as much as we do. I have to admit, I'm pretty sure we think of it as our baby. If all our writings were children, this one would be the one who turns out to be a FIFA star or an Olympic figure skater or a Broadway star or some genius engineer. You get the drift. Now, before I continue, I wanna send a huge **THANK YOU **to _justatvfan, ACasey, Dimonah Tralon, _and r_etropanda37_ for reviewing! Anyways...enjoy!

AC here. I'd just like to 2nd the thanks for readers & reviewers, & to agree once more with those of you who said it was about time Beth & Casey kissed! I'm so happy! :)

* * *

Completely unaware of the goings-on in Casa Casey-Daniels, AJ sat on the Nerd Herd desk, waiting for Chuck as he got all of his stuff together. She couldn't quite explain it, but it seemed that a fair amount of her friend's possessions had found their way into the Buy More, so now he had to find them all to take with them. She'd been waiting for about fifteen minutes when Morgan and Anna walked in, the former in jeans and a Nintendo t-shirt, the latter in a whorish Goth dress.

"Hey, Morgan! What're you doing here?"

"Oh hi, AJ, we're just picking up our last pay checks. What are you doing here; didn't you take the week off for Ellie's wedding?"

"Yeah, but I came in with Chuck to officially call it quits."

Anna perked up, suddenly taking interest in the conversation. "You're leaving?"

AJ shot her a fierce look, then turned back to Morgan as if he'd asked the question. "Yup, I'm heading out after the wedding. I'm thinking I'll head to Dubai, since last time around I never did make it to India."

"Wow, that's…far."

AJ shrugged. "It's not like Hawaii is all that close. Tell you what, you send me e-postcards from your travels and I'll send you some from mine."

"How long will you be gone?"

"No idea. It's a big world out there; still plenty for me to see and experience."

He nodded, and seemed to mull over her words carefully before saying, "We'll be back for Christmas you know, to spend the holidays with everyone. Maybe you should consider coming back then too?"

AJ looked over at Anna, who seemed pissed at the direction their conversation was taking, then back to Morgan, his eyes hopeful and his smile, encouraging.

"Yeah, sounds like a plan."

His smile broadened, and Anna blatantly rolled her eyes in disgust.

"So, I guess we'll see you at the wedding then?"

"Definitely."

* * *

Back at the Casey-Daniels kitchen, the two aforementioned people were trying to push away the lingering effects of their kiss, not so successfully. Beth leaned back from Casey, still a little shell-shocked.

"What just…"

Without giving her time to finish her sentence, John growled and pulled her in for another lasting kiss. When the kiss finally ended, and she could breathe again, she let out a low whistle.

"Well that was…whoa. Been waitin' a long time for that, have ya?"

"If I recall, you kissed me."

Tapping his chest, she smiled innocently at him. "Yes, but _you_ were the one who wouldn't let go. And who pulled me back in. So in reality, you're responsible for about sixty percent of the kiss. Or kisses."

Taking a couple steps back from the table, John motioned to the three or so empty feet between them. "Better?"

Beth glared at him. "That didn't mean you should move away. I think I prefer you standin' close."

"Can't. Might be liable for the action. Why don't _you_ come to _me_?"

She cocked her head, and gave him a once-over. Hm, the view here was pretty spectacular as is; was there really any reason to move? But…the temptation of his lips was a little too much to bear. Sliding off the table, she took five purposeful steps toward him, looking up into his eyes, the blue irises made darker by the passion within their depths.

"Better?"

He said nothing, but the look in his eyes pretty much summed up exactly what he was thinking. She leaned closer, but suddenly stopped. What the hell was she doing? The reality of the situation came crashing down. She was going…well, she wasn't sure where she was going to be sent. And John? He was getting his own team. And was going away for a black-ops mission. Shit. Oh shit shit shit! No. There was no way she could let this happen. They wouldn't be together. Why even try? But…no! Her mind felt like it was swirling around. She knew it would be nigh impossible to be together, but…she couldn't let him get away. Not after wanting him, chasing him for over six months. They could make it work.

"John."

He growled. Slightly frustrated with a hint of impatience. Oh, that was probably because she teased him. Whoops. She should probably kiss him. But the look on his face was priceless. Was it bad she enjoyed tormenting him? Nah, probably not.

"No kiss yet, Johnny boy."

He growled again, but it was a 'call-me-Johnny-boy-again-and-die' growl. She smiled a bit.

"John, we have to think about this. I don't just jump into relationships. I'm actually more of a 'paddle backwards at an incredible speed' type of girl. I like to know what's going on, what will be going on, and in general, where it's all going. But this, what just happened, I have no idea what it means. Where it's going. Where is it going?"

John awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck. For a man so big, he sometimes seemed out of touch with his body; not graceful like he was in combat. She often wondered if it was because he spent so much time being a Marine and a combatant that he never had a chance to really be just a normal guy. But he rarely spoke of his past, and when he did, she didn't press him. She knew that some things were harder to speak of than others. Waiting for an answer, she took time again to study him.

The first thing she noticed about him was how poised for battle he always as. She always thought he'd never lighten up. But he did. He'd never be a completely laid back guy like Awesome was, but he had his moments. His tall stature and muscled features automatically made her think he was built specifically for battle. Had he lived in the time of the Greeks, he would have been one of the great heroes, like Odysseus or Hector (because Achilles was a pansy). It was obvious when they first moved in together that his passion for weapons rivaled her love for western memorabilia.

But there was another side of him. A side not many, if anyone, ever saw. The side that loved quiches, bowling, and Rembrandt. And hated crab. Who suffered through watching the Bonanza marathons on Sunday because his roommate had a slightly unhealthy obsession for all things 1800's. John still hadn't answered her. She looked into his eyes, wondering what he was thinking.

"John, I'm not expecting some all-knowing answer. I know you leave for your new mission soon, and I don't know where I'm gonna be going. But…I mean, if we wanted to make it work, we could. And, well, I mean, we have now, right?"

"We...have now. That's all I can give."

"I'll never ask for more than you have to give." There was a pause, both of them contemplating what this meant for their friendship and their newly budding relationship. Beth broke the silence first. "So…this is a bit backwards and last minute but…will you be my date to Ellie and Awesome's wedding?"

He stared at her for a minute, regret flashing in his eyes. "Can't. I leave the afternoon before."

"Oh. Well no worries; this won't be the first wedding I've attended stag." She reached out and grasped his hand. "Whatever happens, I'm always here. I won't ask for more than you can give; I know you're doing the best you can. We'll just focus on the now, mkay?"

He smirked, and leaned down for another kiss. "In that case, I can think of a few things that may need a little focus."

* * *

LB: Apparently, Beth and John are trying to make up for not kissing all this time by...kissing a lot. :) And AJ is leaving. With Morgan still with Anna. *glares at AC* But I have hope! Because Morgan seemed sad AJ was leaving, and excited at the prospect of seeing her later! So, that's my rambling...please review-we love it when you do!

AC: Um, excuse me? After what you do later in this drabble, you can't possibly be glaring at me! Wait, whoops, have I said too much? Aw well, guess you all will have to wait to see what I'm talking about. ;)


	10. Versus the Ring: Part 3

Hey all, AC here with part 3/9 of VTR. Are you enjoying it so far? I hope so. Anyway, thanks so much for reading & a special thanks to Dimonah Tralon, retropanda37, & ACasey; all I can say is expect the unexpected. ;) & now onto the story!

* * *

On the morning of the wedding, AJ was up before the sun, packing her duffel. She threw in clothes systematically, checked that her bathroom caddy was still well-stocked, then got down to the nitty-gritty of picking out which personal items to carry around the world with her. She threw in first her teddy bear (a gift from her Gran), then her PSP and Nintendo DS, and of course her laptop and camera. Four books and a twenty-five disk case full of DVDs later, AJ was halfway through forcibly zipping up the duffel when she grabbed the group picture on her dresser from a recent dinner at the Bartowski's and added it to the bag.

Bag packed, she left it by the door and ate her usual bowl of Special K and chocolate milk before taking a shower. Slipping into her horrendous pink bridesmaid dress and matching heels (she'd kill Honey Woodcomb next time she saw her), AJ found herself dragging. The truth of it was that for the first time in her life she didn't _want_ to live out of a duffel. She just wanted things to stay the way they were.

Get a grip, AJ thought, you're living in a fantasy world. Haven't you learned anything? Nothing's the way it seems to be—Chuck, Beth, Sarah, Casey, all of them live and deal in secrets. Morgan's chosen a new life in Hawaii with Anna. This isn't home.

Taking a deep breath, AJ finished getting ready and, having promised Ellie she'd be at the church bright and early, made her way out the door. Not looking where she was going, she almost ran dead into—"Bryce?"

"AJ," he said, letting surprise cloud his face for only a moment before schooling his features. "Look, I'm sure you're really confused right now, but—"

"You're a spy."

His eyes narrowed. "Yeah. How did you know?"

AJ shrugged. "Long story, lucky guess, take your pick. What're you doing here anyway, if you're supposed to be dead?"

"Came to see…Chuck. Do you know if he's home?"

"Should be. Hey, Bryce?"

"Yeah?"

"You had a reason for getting Chuck kicked out of Stanford, didn't you?"

He smiled with the air of a con artist. "It was good seeing you again."

AJ nodded, and watched him approach the Morgan door before she climbed into her Jeep and drove off.

Fifteen minutes later, she pulled up in front of the church. Having gotten up so early, she'd expected to be the first one there, and was therefore surprised to find Sarah sitting in the back pew.

"Sarah? What are you doing?"

She jumped slightly, and AJ instinctively ducked, half fearing she'd be shot for startling the spy. "Oh, AJ. Hi."

AJ slid into the pew next to her. "Hi, are you okay? You seem…spacey."

"I'm fine."

After a moment, AJ said ever so casually, "I saw Bryce Larkin."

"What?"

Though mildly alarmed by Sarah's reaction, AJ plowed on. "He was at the apartments, looking for Chuck. I take it you know him then?"

Sarah took a deep, steadying breath. "He was my partner."

From her tone, AJ gathered they'd been partners in every sense of the word.

"Oh. So are you planning on being his partner again?"

She noticed how Sarah winced, sensing the underlying accusation, before nodding. "Those are our orders. We're leaving tomorrow."

"Does Chuck know?"

Sarah shook her head.

"You need to tell him, Sarah. For both of your sakes." I patted her hand softly and excused myself. Standing in the back of the church, watching us, was Mr. Bartowski. Together we walked out of the church and into the back hallway, towards the rooms where everyone would be getting ready for the wedding.

"Hello, Ava."

"Hello, sir. Does Ellie know you're here? I'd hate for her to think you disappeared again."

They shared a smile and he said, "I drove in with her and Charles. I still can't believe Eleanor's getting married today."

"Me either. Devon's a good man; I'm really happy for the both of them."

They walked on in silence, AJ fidgeting with her dress.

"I heard you graduated from MIT. I'm proud of you."

And just like that, AJ lost her cool. Tearing up, she hugged him and said, "I'm so glad you're not dead!"

He pulled back, confusion and concern written all over his face. "Wait, you know? You're not involved as well, are you?"

AJ shook her head. "I just found out while you were captured. Devon found out too. We don't know any details though, just that Chuck, Sarah, Beth, and Casey are spies and that you'd been taken prisoner."

"Good. Listen to me, Ava, you need to keep as far away from this spy business as you can, it's too dangerous."

"But what about Chuck then?"

"Charles is getting out. Rescuing me was his last mission. Promise me you'll stay away from all this spy business."

"Yes, of course I will. I promise."

He hugged her again, then motioned towards the closed door of the bride's changing room. "You better go then. Wouldn't want to spoil Ellie's big day by making you late."

"You're right."

Before she went in though, he grabbed her hand and added, "Just in case, remember that old computer I gave you, that first summer we met? Do you still have it?"

"Yeah."

"If you're ever in trouble, spy-related trouble that is, pull it out and look in the floppy drive."

He released AJ's arm, and without another word she entered Ellie's changing room.

* * *

Beth snarled, cursing Honey Woodcomb and the awful frilly thing called a dress as she tried to run (as fast as she could in three inch heels) to Ellie's changing room. If she wasn't careful, she'd rip her dress, not that she'd really be sad about the fact. Actually, she'd pay money for a tiger, a bear, _something_ to shred it to bits. With her out of it first, of course. Reaching the door, she took a breath and smoothed the dress. At least she could pretend she wasn't late, stressed, and coming apart at the seams. She wished John were here, but he had already left for his mission. Okay, time to do this thing.

Planting a smile on her face and walking as gracefully as she could, she entered the changing room. Sarah and AJ had already arrived, both looking rather…pink. Upon seeing Ellie, the phony smile turned genuine. She hadn't changed into her dress yet, but you could tell she was excited; she glowed.

Giving each girl a hug, Beth clapped her hands together and faked an Italian accent.

"Okay, ladies, we gonna make 'e so beau'iful! Now who's r-ready for 'de magic?"

They all laughed.

Ever practical, Sarah took charge for a moment and said, "Why don't the rest of us help Ellie get into her dress and then we'll take it in turns getting our make-up done?"

There was a general nod of agreement. Carefully, AJ and Beth grabbed the dress off its hanger and with Sarah's help managed to get Ellie into it.

"Oh wow," Beth breathed.

Sarah started, "Ellie, you look—"

"Awesome," AJ finished.

The four of them cracked up. They were still trying to control themselves when one Honey Woodcomb burst in.

"Where is she! Oh, you just look _stunning_!"

The other girls backed out of the way as Honey oozed her way into the room. Beth mentally groaned (as she guessed the others did as well). God bless her, but Honey was a little _too_ involved in the wedding. At least, that's what Beth thought, but nobody had asked her. So Beth was forced to put up with Motherzilla.

Looking around at the group of girls, she gave a slight nod. "Well, you girls look decent." Catching a glance at Beth's shoes (which were not pink to match the dress, but rather silver, because there was no way Beth would pay beaucoup dollars for custom made shoes she'd only wear once), Honey furrowed her brow.

"Well those are…interesting shoes."

Taking a breath, Beth remembered the words om always said: 'Kill 'em with kindness.'

"Well thank you, Mrs. Woodcomb. You're looking lovely today—have you and your husband found where you're sitting yet? I bet you're just dying to rest for a moment, you've been busy worrying that every detail is perfect, but you don't have to worry—we've got everything under control."

"Hardly. I mean, there's so much to do. Look at your hair, MJ—"

"AJ," AJ corrected her with a scowl. As much as she agreed Devon was Awesome, she failed to understand where he got it from. Certainly not from him mother. Than again, she had nothing in common with her parents. Hmmm, maybe the awesomeness skipped a generation…

"Yes, AJ. Anyway, your hair is a mess, and Sarah, you really should put on some makeup."

"I'm already wearing makeup—"

There was a knock on the door. The four girls sighed in relief when Honey went to get the door, and Ellie whispered, "I'm sorry about her."

"It's okay…but has she always been this…" Beth paused to search for the right word.

"—crazy?" supplied AJ.

Sarah tried, "Controlling?"

At both terms, Beth shook her head. "No…so psychotic and Motherzilla-esque?"

Ellie smiled. " 'fraid so. If I had it my way, I'd have a small wedding. On the beach, with close friends and family. But Honey wants this to be her son's perfect day. And it will be."

The smile on Ellie's face didn't quite reach her eyes, something the other girls noticed, but didn't say anything about. Not yet, anyway. Honey had walked back towards the group of girls.

"Your brother wants to see you, even though I told him it's bad luck—"

AJ and Beth simultaneous sidestepped Honey, with the former pulling the door open and the latter pulling Chuck in. He entered and stood next to the mirror, looking at Ellie with an incredulous look on his face.

"Look at you, your dreams are coming true."

Not wanting to intrude on their moment, Sarah, Beth, and AJ pulled away, taking Honey with them. "Why don't you let us escort you to your seat, Honey?" Sarah tried again. "Woody and Devon are probably wondering where you've gotten to."

"Oh, alright. But don't blame me if you all look awful in the wedding party pictures," she said as she followed Sarah out the door.

"Like we could actually look good in these dresses," AJ whispered to Beth, who tried not to laugh and failed miserably.

* * *

AC: Bryce, Papa B, & Honey Woodcomb; who's going to show up next? Look forward to an extra-long chapter next time, & please review! It makes us smile & motivates us to update faster!

LB: I second what AC's said, and, yeah, I think she's covered it. I do want to say danke schon, merci, gracias, and many other thanks for continuing to read, because it really does mean a lot to AC and myself. Look forward to another chapter soon! :)


	11. Versus the Ring: Part 4

LB here, with part four of Versus the Ring! Firstly, thank you to the readers and reviewers! Y'all rock, and I hope you enjoy this next, slightly longer piece here. Hmm, I don't actually have too much else to say, as you know, don't own Chuck, yada yada yada; that's about it.

Enjoy!

* * *

"Don't worry Ellie—I'm sure everything's fine. In fact, why don't I check that right now? I'll just step out for a minute."

Beth was the epitome of calmness as she walked past Dr. Woodcomb and into the hallway. Once she was far enough away from the door that no one could hear her, she started muttering to herself. What on earth was the holdup? There had to be something fishy going on. Why else would the wedding have not started yet—when it was already twenty minutes late. Could something be up with Chuck? But no, the Intersect was gone—Operation Bartowski was over. She was only here until next week, and then it was Beth's turn to head out; Beckman had informed her that morning that she was likely going to Warsaw for her next mission. Man, she'd kill for a slice of pie right about now. Or some pancakes. She needed chocolate.

"Oh, hey Beth, what are you doing out in the hallway?"

Looking up, Beth saw Morgan fast approaching. "Just taking a breather. I couldn't really take one more comment about my hair being a shade too light."

As his curious glance, she elaborated. "Honey has decided that I should have dyed my hair—because 'the orange shade it is clashes with the dress'." Eyes narrowed, she started muttering under her breath. "I'll give her something that clashes…a four pound cast iron skillet upside the head ought to do the trick."

After giving her a slightly worried glance, Morgan quickly passed by, throwing a parting comment that he had to find and speak to Sarah. Hmm….that was different—why'd he have to speak to Sarah? It could only mean one thing: something was up with Chuck. Which could only mean trouble. Beth started to head back to the dressing room—whatever Morgan had to say to Sarah, well, she wanted to be there to hear it.

* * *

"Relax, Ellie, everything's going to be alright," AJ said for what seemed like the hundredth time.

First the wedding had been inexplicably stalled, then Beth had slipped out to get some air and hadn't come back, and now Sarah had disappeared too. Ellie was meditating in front of the mirror, with AJ kneeling next to her. AJ's mind was beginning to wander as she continued her mantra, when out of the corner of her eye she noticed Mr. Bartowski at the doorway.

"Ellie, chérie, I'll be right back. Just, keep doing your deep breathing exercises, okay?"

Once out of Ellie's earshot, she asked Mr. B., "What in the name of Shiva is going on?"

"There's a bit of a situation; Ted Roark is here."

AJ tilted her head in confusion. "Roark? I don't understand—?"

"He's an enemy spy; he's the one who captured me. Now he's after Charles."

"And he's here? What are we going to do?"

Mr. B. shushed AJ. "Don't worry; Charles, Sarah, and Beth have everything under control. I'm actually on my way to check on them."

"I'll come with you."

"No, no, you go check on wedding; I'm not sure Morgan's got everything under control."

AJ nodded. "Yeah, lest my ears deceive me, that's Lester singing Mr. Roboto…just, be safe, alright?"

"You too."

Slipping out of her heels, AJ ran down the hallway, accidentally snagging her dress on a potted plant along the way. Honey Woodcomb was going to kill her.

She ran into the church to find Jeff and Lester rocking out, Woody and Honey Woodcomb passing the happy flask back and forth, and Devon interrogating Morgan. Running down the aisle and up to the latter, she hissed, "Morgan, what the hell is this?"

"Chuck asked me to stall—"

"So you had Jeff and Lester give an impromptu concert? Do you realize how dangerous that is?"

He shrugged helplessly. Catching Devon's eye, AJ shook her head. Then with a sigh of resignation she approached Woody. "Mind if I have a swig?"

He handed the flask over without comment. Ah well, AJ thought, if she had to take a front row seat to this train wreck in progress, then she might as well enjoy it.

* * *

This was a disaster. An absolute disaster. Sarah and Beth were peering through the side door of the reception area—Mr. Bartowski had been kind enough to give them a route to avoid other Fulcrum members. In quiet whispers, they conversed.

"Talk about your regular ole' shotgun wedding…how we gonna play this, Sarah?"

"Good question. Not too much we can do—we'll have to work with what we have."

"Which is a lack of guns, knives, or other sharp objects that can be used as projectiles. I'm blaming Honey for this one—had she let me wear my chopsticks, I'd have knives."

Sarah let out a wry laugh. "True enough."

The blonde gestured to the table of presents, and Beth nodded. They both ducked down behind it watching Roark pace. Sarah started quietly unwrapping the presents, looking for anything that could be used as a weapon, and Beth did the same. Set of dishes: not so much. Flatware—tempting, but what was she going to do: spoon somebody to death? After the seventh or eighth package, Sarah unwrapped a set of knives. Beth silently cursed—the only good things she found were…well, nothing much. There was some towels (good for soaking up blood?) and some crystal glasses. She kept unwrapping presents, but was thrown off when Chuck dashed through the door

Roark had just been about to cut the cake when Chuck yelled, "Don't you dare!"

Sarah gasped next to Beth while Chuck continued.

"If you ever want to see the Intersect again, you will not touch anything in this room. Do I make myself clear? Today is my sister's wedding day, and trust me, you don't want to see her angry!"

Beth winced. This wasn't good. It's never good when things didn't happen according to plan. Beth watched the interaction with interest and some anxiety, all the while still unwrapping presents in search of something to be used as a weapon.

"Where's the Intersect, Chuck?" Beth saw Sarah twitch next to her as Roark's men aimed their guns toward Chuck.

"Wait, I brought an Intersect!"

Beth watched with some shock as Bryce walked in. What the hell? He…shouldn't have been at the wedding. Beth knew he was going to be part of the new Intersect project; it's just…he wasn't supposed to show up at the wedding. The conversation continued on while the unwrapped packages started adding up. Just when Beth was about to silently scream, she unwrapped a set of cast iron cookware. Jackpot! Bludgeoning people to death—that, she could do. She would have cheered, except she had to be quiet, and things looked to be going bad. Roark cocked his shotgun, and pointed it at Chuck.

"Fulcrum wants Chuck here dead no matter what …shoot Mr. Bartowski."

"—Sarah, now!"

Sarah threw a knife towards one of the men by Chuck, and everyone scattered. Beth grabbed the biggest skillet of the cast-iron set, and started beating up whoever came close. One got pretty close to Sarah, and Beth launched her skillet, hoping Sarah didn't move to the left any. The skillet ended up smacking one of the Fulcrum men in the leg, and Beth picked up a nearby centerpiece and hurled it at the man's head. Everything looked to be going alright, but then Sarah ran out of knives, and Bryce ran out of bullets.

* * *

"That guy singing; his name's Lester. I kissed him once," AJ said, taking another drink from the flask before passing it back.

"That's terrible," Woody said, shaking his head and taking a swig of his own.

"I know it. I did it to save Morgan's butt, too, and he's thanked me by announcing he's gonna run off to Hawaii with that skank Anna."

Honey asked, "Which ones are they?" After a few drinks from the happy flask, she'd really loosened up, and AJ found herself having a much better time with the Awesomes listening to Jeffster blast out Mr. Roboto than she ever would have thought possible.

"Morgan's the one who introduced the band. And Anna's the Asian girl sitting behind Big Mike, the rather healthy-looking black man."

Woody and Honey both nodded. "She does seem slutty," Honey said as she took a sip of her own. "And who on earth did her make-up?"

"The undead, probably. I honestly don't know what Morgan sees in her."

"You and he would make a much better couple," Woody said.

AJ gave a very unladylike snort. "Morgan and me? Nah. I'm a free spirit, and Morgan, Morgan's going to Hawaii. Besides, we've known each other since we were kids, it'd never work."

Woody shrugged. "My mistake."

"Oh, nonsense, you obviously like him," Honey argued. "Just look at the way you—what happened to your dress?"

Taking another sip of liquid courage, AJ answered, "I tore it on a plant. Kind of on purpose. Because really, Honey, it's a hideous dress, don't you think?"

Before she could answer, Devon idled over to them and grabbed the drinking flask. "Okay you three, I think that's enough for you."

"Eh, there's hardly any left anyway. All yours, Captain," AJ said.

He frowned, but took a drink just as Jeffster hit the chorus.

* * *

Well, this wasn't good. Sarah was out of knives; Beth had no more odds and ends to knock people out with—they were officially up the creek without the paddle. She watched with growing horror as Roark readied to shoot Chuck. This was it. No way out of this one. After a decidedly unfunny pun on Roark's part, everyone watched in silence, waiting for that final shot to ring out.

Well, mostly silence. It was low at first, a slight hum that Beth immediately dismissed as a faulty air conditioner. But the hum grew louder. Covertly glancing up, she saw black parachutes cross the roof. Well _that_ was unexpected. Finally seeing something amiss, Roark looked up, and dodged just out of the way. Pulling herself to the left, Beth elbowed her captor and dove down behind a table as a number of Special Forces agents shot their way through the enemies. She kept her head down; she really didn't want to end up injuring herself because of idiocy.

"All clear, sir."

A voice sounded from the corner of the room, and Beth watched as others started to crawl out of their hiding spots. She stood, stretching her arms out and carefully brushing away some glass bits from her dress. She turned to ask how Sarah and Chuck were (and Bryce too, but she didn't really know him, so she wasn't as concerned) when she was distracted by an image in her peripheral. There, in probably two tons of Kevlar, a bulky helmet, and looking just as dashing as ever, was John.

* * *

"The time has come at last—"

"Secret, secret, I've got a secret!" AJ sang along. As the tempo of the song had picked up, she could've sworn she heard shots being fired and glass breaking in the reception area, so in an effort to distract herself from the horrible scenarios running through her mind, and to hopefully keep the other guests from wondering what all the commotion was, she'd started singing along and had moved to face the awaiting crowd so that she was directing them all to sing along.

"To throw away the mask," Lester sang. Admittedly, for a lesbian Indian (as Woody had christened him), he had a pretty good voice.

"Secret, secret, I've got a secret!" And wasn't that the truth? This spy business was crazy; AJ'd only just found out about it and already, here she was, helping to cover it up. This was way more stressful than traveling the world.

"Now everyone can see—"

"Secret, secret, I've got a secret!"

"My true identity," Lester went on. Then, just as he was about the reach the end of the song, Jeff pulled out the pyrotechnics for the grand finale. Oh God.

AJ shouted out, "No, Jeff, no!", running forward to stop him and deepening the tear in her dress in the process, but it was too late. As Lester belted out, "I'm Kilroy! Kilroy! Kilroy!" Jeff set off the sparklers and the sprinklers went off, drenching everyone.

Rounding on Morgan, AJ shouted through the drizzle, "Why in the _hell_ did you let them bring _fireworks_ to a _wedding_?"

* * *

Sarah and Chuck went to go find Ellie while John's men began to 'clean up'. John was busy giving orders; he hadn't noticed her yet. Beth helped where she could, mostly in tending a gunshot wound or two—some kind guest had thankfully (and unknowingly) donated their sewing machine essentials kit so Beth could stitch up the wounds. She was focused on the task at hand, and after finally stitching up the last man, she sighed and closed her eyes. What a day. A tiring, crazy day. And they said weddings in Tennessee were bad.

"Ma'am, you should go—you shouldn't be here."

She looked up to see one of the men (she had no idea who he was) looking sternly at her. Wait, did he just call her ma'am? How old did he think she was?

"Umm…pardon?"

"Problem, Miles?"

Miles snapped to attention. "Colonel Casey. There's a civilian. She needs to be relocated."

"She's not a civilian."

Beth looked up at him, her smile just barely hidden. "Always one to make an entrance, eh John? How'd you know to come?"

The soldier's eyebrows rose at the intimate use of his Colonel's first name. But neither Beth nor John noticed—both were too focused on looking at each other.

"Bartowski called. What happened to your dress?"

She glanced down to see where John was pointing. A jagged rip went from her stomach down her side a ways. That would explain the breeze she felt. Well, not much she could do about it now.

"Oh, you know—the usual. Fighting crimes, kicking ass, taking names. Damaging dresses is just part of the job."

"Colonel…?"

"Without sparing his man a glance, he rattled off a list of orders, his eyes never once leaving Beth's face. The man disappeared, and Beth was struck how easy it was for John to command. He was a natural born leader. Eyes twinkling, Beth started to laugh. At John's questioning glance, she spoke.

"Now, it may just be me, but if you had wanted to be my date, you could have come through the front door—I'm sure they'd have let you in."

He stepped closer to her, not touching her, but close enough so that Beth could feel the heat of his body, and if she listened closely, she could hear the rhythm of his heart. Or it may have been the ending notes of Mr. Roboto—they sounded similar.

John began to speak, but his words were drowned out by a loud ringing throughout the building. Without warning, the sprinkler system turned on, soaking all in the room. She detected a faint smile on his lips, and laughed at the absurdity of it all. Talk about a wedding from hell. Reaching up, she took John's helmet off.

"If I'm gonna be soaked, you might as well be too. Using a helmet to shade yourself isn't fair."

"I came prepared—besides, you look…"

He trailed off, taking in her appearance. She blushed, but grinned nonetheless. "Well it's not really my fault. I didn't choose to wear this dress. And I look…soaked? Like a drowned rat? Cause that's what I feel like—what kind of people bring pyrotechnics to a wedding? Though that does save us from having to…"

"Just shut up and kiss me."

She shut her mouth, then opened it again. "Is that an order,_ Colonel_?"

And without waiting for an answer, she wrapped her arms around him, kissing him fiercely. She didn't care it was pouring water on them. Didn't care about a thing in the world except for him. He was real, here in front of her. They kissed as if they'd been apart for years, when it had been less than twenty-four hours since they'd been apart. Lord, Beth thought, if she could make a living by just kissing him all day, she would. It was nirvana. Vaguely, she heard commotion in the background, but at the moment she didn't really give a damn.

Finally pulling away, she realized what the commotion was. John's men were still in the room. And they were _clapping_. Not only that, but they cheered, slapped John on the back, and did that weird 'ooh-rah rah' cheer they were famous for. Beth wasn't used to having a crowd watch her make the moves on her man, but John didn't seem to mind. In fact, in one of those rare occasions, he was genuinely smiling. Not a happy smile, but more of a contented smirk. Wearing a smirk of her own, she winked at him.

"Well, soldier, seems like they're cheering for us. Care for an encore?"

* * *

LB: Well wasn't that fun! We're almost halfway done with VTR, and we haven't even got to the best parts yet! So, to recap: When in doubt, drink from a happy flask, cookery can also double as weapons, and ugly dresses will Always get ripped. Oh, and **never**, I repeat, **ever** let strange men like Jeff and Lester bring fireworks to a wedding. Or any indoor venue, actually. Until next time!

AC: Epic summary LB. & can't believe we're almost 1/2way through, I'd better get writing on season 3 drabbles. Am I the only 1 who loved the amazing BCness at the end? You should review & let us know ;)


	12. Versus the Ring: Part 5

Hey guys, AC here! Thank you so, so much for the reviews; you guys really blew us away! :) I'm so glad you're enjoying this, & so without further preamble, here's the next chapter. (Usual disclaimers & such apply)

* * *

At the altar, AJ was raging.

"The wedding is ruined, Ellie is going to kill us, I'm drenched, and this all your fault!" she seethed, glaring daggers at Morgan.

"My fault? But Chuck's the one who asked me to stall…"

"Yes, to stall! Not to bring the fire department down on us! Why the bloody hell didn't you ask me for help?"

"Well I—" Before he could continue, Anna approached. Despite herself, AJ smiled. Anna's thick layer of black make-up had run so that she looked like a raccoon, and her hair hung like a dead thing on the back of her head. She looked awful.

"Back off; it wasn't Morgan's fault."

Arms crossed, AJ stared her down. "You know what, I've had just about enough of you. This is between Morgan and me, so _butt out_."

Anna made an indignant noise and shoved AJ, who caught unawares fell back a bit. Well, no way was she taking that lying down. She moved forward as if to shove Anna back, then at the last second swung her leg out instead, sweeping Anna's feet out from under her.

"Face it, Wu, I'm out of your league. So _Butt_. _Out_."

Then, without so much as a parting glance towards Morgan, AJ walked back down the aisle and out of the church.

* * *

Back at Castle, John's men were putting Roark into his nice, secure cell while Beth was with John giving the report to Beckman. She'd rest a bit easier after Roark was carted off and done with. She shook her head at the events of the day. Had someone told her she'd be reunited with John less than twenty-four hours after they'd last met…well, let's just say the day had been one crazy ride.

She couldn't believe Ellie's wedding was ruined though. Her heart reached out for the woman—the wedding may not have been what Ellie had wanted, but it was _her_ day, and instead of getting to be the blushing bride, she was left standing soaking wet by sprinklers and proclaiming 'the wedding was off'. She couldn't even imagine if her wedding ended that way.

"Some wedding huh?"

She turned to face John. Lucky man had already changed. She figured she'd grab whatever she could find in the wardrobe room. "Some wedding indeed. Poor Ellie…I can't imagine what she's feeling right now. And she doesn't even know the real reasons the wedding was ruined. I'd hate to be Chuck, Morgan, or AJ at the moment. Do you think she and Devon will try again with the wedding or...?"

"Don't see why not. Not Devon's fault."

"No, but…" she trailed off.

"But?" he prompted.

"Well, I mean, this wasn't the wedding she wanted. It was the wedding Honey wanted. Because she wanted it to be 'awesome'. If I were Ellie, I'd be curled up with a plate of brownies, not wanting to see anyone."

"Not something stronger?"

Beth laughed. "Nah, I'll choose chocolate over alcohol anytime. Now if you find me a chocolate alcohol, I might be persuaded. But until then, no."

One of John's men walked up. "Sir, the prisoner's been contained."

"Good." He turned back to Beth, until the man spoke again.

"Colonel?"

"Spit it out, Thompson."

"Who's the babe?"

John growled and Beth cracked a smile. "Well, I'm not a babe, but thanks for the compliment. Beth Daniels, CIA. And who might you be?"

"Sgt. Jeremy Thompson. And you most definitely are a babe."

She was about to reply that 'babe' in her terms wasn't a compliment, but John beat her to the punch. "Call her babe once more, Thompson, and I'll make sure the remainder of your time on my team will be hell, is that clear?"

He blanched slightly, and it occurred to Beth that the soldiers had a healthy respect (and a bit of fear) for their commander. "Yes sir."

"Good."

Thompson quickly moved to the table where the other men were setting up a game of poker. Beth shook her head at John, still chuckling.

"Was that really necessary?"

"I'm the only one allowed to call you 'babe'."

"Oh are you? And when was this discussed?"

He shot her a look, and she grinned. "Not sayin' I mind, just curious."

He let out an amused grunt, and sent a longing look to the card game in progress. Catching it, Beth grinned. Men and their cards. "Don't think I didn't see that look ya shot the cards—I gotta get outta this joint anyhow; I need to see how Ellie's handling things. You go have fun."

"Sure?"

"Wouldn't have said so unless I was sure. 'Sides, I'm not leavin' yet—I'll get a few looks walkin' outta the joint in this getup."

"Dunno, think ya look pretty damn good myself."

"John!"

He smirked, and she just shook her head. She turned to head towards the wardrobe room, giving her hips a bit of an unnecessary sway. Why not? She could feel his eyes on her; figured she might as well tease him a bit. She came back about ten minutes later, clad in a tight pair of jeans, and a rather skimpy, flouncy white top. A couple of John's men stared as she walked over and leaned against the edge of the table, facing John. He glanced up from his poker hand, eyes trailing down her body.

"Hope you plan to keep that outfit."

"Not to wear in public! It was the first thing I found that fit me decently."

He let out an approving grunt. "It fits you excellently."

"Yeah, fits 'bout as well as that damn cocktail dress I used to own."

One of the men spoke up. "The Colonel's right, ma'am, it fits you like a glove."

"Crawford, need I remind you that's _my woman_ you're talking about?"

"I'm just appreciating the view, sir."

"You can appreciate it from guard duty to Roark."

The soldier seemed to get the point. "Sorry, Colonel. I meant no disrespect."

Before John could respond, Beth spoke. "No disrespect was taken. Now as much fun as it is chatting with you boys and watching this enlightening poker match, I've got a distraught bride to check on." She leaned forward, giving John a quick kiss, or what was intended to be a quick kiss. John pulled her closer, ignoring the fact she knocked over his poker chips and his whole team was watching. Then again, Beth thought absently, that may have been the point. The man was a bit…protective—he didn't like the others looking at her. Not that she minded his protectiveness. It was sweet, to a point. They finally parted, and Beth grinned.

"Now was that necessary?"

"Always."

She shook her head, and stood to go. "Don't you dare leave without telling me goodbye John Casey. Else I'll make the threats that you give your men look like pleasure compared to what I have in store for you."

"Duly noted."

Giving him one last peck on the cheek, she headed out of Castle, intent on finding Ellie and doing her damndest to fix the mess Roark and his agents created.

* * *

After her little spat with Anna, AJ stormed out of the church intent on driving back to her apartment, but was stopped by Mr. B. at the door.

"What's the matter?" he asked.

"Nothing," AJ said, shaking the water out of her hair. "Did everything go alright on the spy front?"

"More or less; Colonel Casey and his men got here just in the nick of time to capture Roark."

"Casey's here? Well, Beth must be happy at least."

"Why would Beth be happy?"

AJ shook her head, laughing. "It's a long story. Can I give you a ride back to the apartments?"

"Sure."

AJ led him over to my Jeep, opening the passenger's door before moving over to the driver's seat and climbing in.

"I can't believe Eleanor cancelled the wedding," Mr. B. said as soon as we were out of the parking lot.

"We'll figure something out," AJ said with a confidence she didn't quite have. "In the year since I've been back, the gang's managed to pull off some pretty impressive things. Of course, it's makes more sense now that I know they're all spies…"

"How did you find out anyway?"

"Well, I'd been suspicious for a while, what with all of the strange people going in and out of the yogurt shop's freezer and how Chuck and the others have a tendency to disappear all at once for hours at a time," AJ said, pulling onto the freeway, "but what really tipped me off is that the found you, sir."

"Oh?"

"You're not an easy man to find," she elaborated. "I'd been helping Chuck look for you for months and we'd both given up when suddenly he and Sarah showed up at the complex with you. They had to have access to something I didn't."

Mr. B. said, "Charles only found me because I let him find me. It wasn't safe for me to come back before."

"I'm glad you came back now," AJ said.

Smiling, Mr. B. said after a moment, "So tell me what you've been doing these last few years. The last time I saw you, you were seventeen."

AJ thought back. It had been her last summer in Burbank before going to college. She remembered the day he'd gone MIA, how Ellie had cried for days and Chuck had almost changed his mind about going to school. For a long time she'd been convinced he'd been killed or was being held hostage, because she'd been unwilling to accept the possibility that he'd willingly left his family. She was glad to know now that she'd been right on that last count; he'd left to protect them, not because he wanted to.

"Well you already know about MIT. After graduating, I did some traveling, and then a year ago I came back to Burbank for Gran's funeral and ended up staying for a while."

He tilted his head slightly. "A while?"

"I'm leaving for Dubai late tonight."

"What's in Dubai?"

AJ shrugged her shoulders. "Not sure yet."

"Oh boy."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You're not in love with Charles, are you?"

The Jeep veered into oncoming traffic from AJ's surprise before she got a hold of herself and got back in the right lane. "No! God, no! Chuck's like my brother. Besides, everybody knows he and Sarah belong together."

"I had to ask. Who is he then?"

"Who's who?"

"The boy who's got you all riled up. Oh, I bet I know, it's Morgan isn't it? He always did like you."

AJ kept her eyes determinately on the road. "I don't know what you're talking about. There isn't any boy."

"Of course not," Mr. B. acknowledged. "So what's the story with Beth and Casey?"

"Oh, well as I'm sure you've noticed, Casey isn't the most personable fellow and Beth's a total people person. Classic ying and yang. So of course they're head over heels for one another."

"Sure."

"Anyway, Casey tries to act like he doesn't care, but then he goes and calls Beth 'Tulip' or holds the door open for her or something. And Beth, well, she doesn't even deny her infatuation anymore."

"So why aren't they together?"

AJ considered; why _weren't_ they together? "Now that I know they're both spies, I'm assuming that's why."

"And why aren't you and Morgan together?"

Again, the car swerved for a split second as the driver's concentration faltered. "Mr. B., when'd you become such a gossip?"

"I may have been hiding out in the middle of nowhere for a very long time, but I still remember what it was like to be young and in love. Your feelings for Morgan must be pretty strong if you're going all the way to India to escape them."

AJ was saved from having to answer by their arrival at the apartment complex. Getting out of the car, she said, "We'd better go check on Ellie."

* * *

AC: So, a slightly less action-packed chapter than the list, but hopefully just as enjoyable. Please review & let us know?


	13. Versus the Ring: Part 6

Hi y'all! So, LB here, and as you can see, we're up to the next part of VTR! Which is super exciting. I think so at least. So, as you know, AC and I don't own anything. Except AJ and Beth that is. And a big **thank you **so much to the reviewers and readers, you guys keep us writing!

* * *

Beth rested against the couch after changing into something comfier than that wasn't pink ruffles or super-tight denim. It was burning up in the apartment—she'd never bothered to figure out how to work the thermostat, and since John had left, she couldn't figure out how to turn the blasted A/C on—the temperature was constantly fluctuating between really hot and really cold. Which is why she was in a faded pair of jean shorts, a green tank top, and a big yellow 80's type sweater with belt. She had stopped by to see Ellie, but Devon had told her it probably wouldn't be awesome to see her at the moment—she wasn't really up to company. So after giving Devon a plate of sugar cookies with the assurance he'd hand them to Ellie, Beth headed back home. Which is where she was now—hot, tired, and desperately wanting to go back to Castle and see John. But, he had his men there—and she was pretty sure he never got enough guy time. Chuck, Awesome, and Morgan were good guys, but they didn't have the military background that John could easy to connect with. After pacing around for fifteen minutes, she was just about to give up the goat and head back to Castle when her phone rang. Looking at the caller ID, she was slightly surprised to find it was Sarah.

"You rang?"

"Hey, what are you doing?"

"Now?"

"Yes, now. You're needed at Castle."

"Sure, what's up? Wait, Roark didn't—"

"—He's fine. Chuck's using his government money to pay for Ellie's second wedding. We could use your help. I'm heading out looking for bridesmaid dresses with AJ right now—Casey and his team are working on location and decoration."

John…wedding planner? Now this, she had to see. "I'd love to—I'm headed down to Castle now. Do you know if anybody has the cake?"

"You'd have to ask Casey—he's in charge of everything there."

"Will do. Good luck finding dresses! And I swear to all things good and holy, if they're pink again I will personally see to it that you never see another pink object in your life."

Sarah laughed, and Beth ended the call. Grabbing her purse, recipe book, and phone, she headed down to help with the preparations.

* * *

Ellie had barricaded herself in the bathroom, and Devon was trying to calm her down, so Mr. B. went to talk to Chuck while AJ caught up with Sarah. Sarah's dress was in worse shape than AJ's, which was definitely saying something since the latter had tripled the length of the tear in her skirt during her spat with Wu. Both women took a seat in the living room, sitting in silence for a few moments.

"So I hear you got into a fight with Anna," Sarah finally said.

"Yup. I hear you got into a fight with enemy spies."

"Yeah."

They both sighed.

"Maybe we should go check on Chuck," Sarah suggested after another beat.

"Good idea."

Entering Chuck's room, Sarah asked, "Hey, you okay?"

"No, I'm not. I'm not okay; I don't want to have to save my sister anymore using a Special Forces team. I just want to be a normal guy who helps his sister in normal ways. Like right now if I could give her anything in the world, I would…" he trailed off, and it was clear he'd just gotten a brilliant idea. He moved to grab something from a drawer, pulling out an envelope with a check in it.

"What is it, Chuck?" AJ asked.

"I think I might know how to fix this." He turned to Sarah, holding out the check for her. "Do you have time for one more mission before you take off?"

"It's not what a normal guy would do," she answered, accepting it with a smile. Turning to AJ, Chuck asked, "Can you help?"

Catching on, she said, "Of course. You just go talk to Ellie; we'll handle this."

He nodded and left.

Looking between Sarah and AJ, Mr. Bartowski said, "I'll leave you girls to it then," and followed his son out the door.

"So how do we pull together a wedding in a handful of hours?" AJ asked Sarah.

Sarah considered, and then answered, "We call in the troops."

While she pulled out her phone to call Casey, AJ decided to make herself useful and start searching the web for places where they could get new dresses fast. By the time Sarah finished her call, AJ'd found a promising place not too far away.

"Okay, so Casey's onboard; they're handling everything except the dresses. How are we doing on that front?"

"I've found a good prospect, Voluptuous Val's Vintage Dresses. It's about a thirty minute drive from here."

"Voluptuous Val?" Sarah said skeptically.

"Well it's not like David's Bridal does rush orders."

"Alright, let's go then. I'll call Beth from the road."

"But first, we really need to change."

Dressed much more comfortably in jeans and sweaters, they took the Jeep so that AJ could drive, and made good time to the store thanks to the GPS on AJ's phone. When they arrived, the saw Voluptuous Val's was a small, hole in the wall sort of shop, and there was only one other car in its parking lot.

"Are you armed?" AJ asked Sarah as they walked towards the front door.

"…Yes."

"Good."

They walked into the store and were immediately greeted by Val herself, who was indeed quite voluptuous. "Well what a wonderful surprise! What can I help you lades with?"

Sarah looked to AJ. Apparently, her spy training hadn't included how to deal with such overly enthusiastic people.

"We need a wedding dress and three bridesmaid dresses," AJ answered, smiling sweetly.

"And which of you lovely ladies is the lucky girl?"

"Neither of us; the bride's currently at home depressed because her wedding got… rained on. So can you help us, please?"

"Aw, that's awful! Of course I'll assist you!" She grabbed AJ's left arm and Sarah's right and dragged them over to a section of her store full of wedding dresses. "What size are you searching for?"

"Oh, I've got the measurements," Sarah said, searching her pockets for the piece of paper with all of the girls' dress sizes. "Here you go, top one," she said, handing Val the paper.

"Well, what about this wedding dress?" Val said after a minute, pulling out a frilly atrocity from the rack.

"No munchies!" "Definitely not."

Val returned the dress and pulled out the next one. It was something AJ imagined Anna Wu would wear; short and skanky. Definitely not right for Ellie.

"Oh God!" "Merde, no!"

Putting the dress back, Val held out a third option. It was very basic—thin strap with no sleeves, and more importantly no over the top frills.

"Perfecto!" "Perfect!"

Val smiled triumphantly.

* * *

Back at Castle, Beth was wondering what the heck she'd walked in upon. John's men were in a tizzy, walking to and fro, half of them on cell phones, papers and flyers everywhere. She heard one of the men ask John how to spell begonia, John replying for the man to spell it out. She stood in the doorway for a second, just watching them.

It looked like a fabric store had exploded. Rolls of fabric stood everywhere; thankfully, there wasn't a piece of lace in sight. She dodged around one of the men—Crawford, she thought—and headed toward John until one of the men approached him first.

"Sir, what about this one?"

Giving it a cursory glance, he shook his head. "No, no, that'll clash with the bunting."

Waving him away, his phone call must have picked up because he started talking. She heard some words about perimeter and a matter of national something. Leave it to John to call in his connections. She wandered over to one of the tables filled with papers. Hmm…menus. That's what they were. For catering. As if they're gonna be able to wrangle up that much fancy food—even Beth knew that this late in the game, their best bet was an easier alternative to fancy catering. Gah, and who on earth would order that much caviar? No, this wasn't the type of food they'd want. She dug into her purse…she had a pen somewhere. Nope, not lip gloss, not—

"Need a pen?"

Half turning, she saw the soldier who had called her babe holding out a pen. What was his name…crap…oh! Thompson, she thought.

"Yes please, Sgt. Thompson, right? D'ya know which soldier was workin' on the menus?"

"That's right, ma'am, Jeremy Thompson. Been a part of the Colonel's crew for a couple years—off and on, since he moved to this mission. As for the menus, well, we've all been trying to help with it; everyone's been tryin' to get the actual weddin' together—no time for the reception really."

Beth laughed. "That would explain why there's barbecue and caviar on the same menu. Well consider the meals officially taken over—I know a thing or two about food; one being that the current menu will not do. I don't think anyone wants to be eating barbecue ribs while moving further on down the line to the baked lasagna. Oh, and it's Beth. Or Daniels. Or even 'hey you'. As long as it's not babe or ma'am. The first because John will kill you; the second being because I will kill ya. Whereabouts are ya from? I can tell you're southern, I just don't know how southern. Alabama perhaps?"

"Louisiana actually. You're from a lil' northern of there, right? I'd stake my money on you bein' a Tennessee gal."

"Then you'd win the betting pool. Tennessee born and bred. If you're not otherwise engaged, would you like to help me with the menus? I'd love an extra hand."

"Be much obliged to help ya, ma'a—Beth, but the Colonel's got me workin—"

"Thompson, you and Everly are to head to location to set up—Colonel's orders—the supplies will be there when you arrive."

Thompson nodded in affirmative to the brunette soldier, and turned back to Beth momentarily. "Looks like I won't be able to help ya, but I have a feelin' you know your way around a banquet—southern hospitality an' all."

"You would be correct in that assumption. I can whip up a meal sure as the world." Beth completed her statement with a flourish of her pen, acting as if it were a whisk. Laughing, Jeremy bid his goodbyes, and headed towards Everly, leaving Beth shifting nervously from one foot to the other as the unknown soldier stood in front of her. She didn't know what it was, but she didn't like the way he was looking at her. Or looking in general. It made her uneasy. Thinking maybe it was because she didn't know him, and his personality was closed off, unlike Jeremy's, she smiled brightly, holding out her hand to his.

"Beth Daniels, now officially in charge of the food. Pleasure meetin' ya. What's John got you workin' on?"

He stared at her hand for a second, but didn't shake it; rather, he kept staring, and Beth mentally docked him points while withdrawing her hand. She didn't know just who he thought he was, but he was bein' just plain_ rude. _And she would have said so too, had John not walked over at that particular time.

"Miles, you're supposed to be confirming the flower orders, and heading over to the courtyard to set up for the reception, not lollygagging around—Beth, when did you arrive?"

He waved his hand at Miles, and the man exited, looking none too happy. Beth glared at his back—she hoped he fell in the fountain. Smoothing her features, she addressed John's question. "Got here just a bit ago; Sarah called while en route to some place called Bodacious B—ran into your Sergeant; we bonded over your as-of-now atrocious reception menu. Now don't fret too much—I've got it under control. I managed to whip up a five hundred meal dinner for a shotgun wedding when I was nineteen; this'll be cake. Cake! Shit! We don't have a cake, do we? Hells bells!"

She looked around frantically, spinning to nab up a few of the flyers before she was pulled away from the table by John. "You've been here for over fifteen minutes and haven't even given me a proper hello?"

"Oh you're incorrigible." She kissed his cheek, looking over at the preparations his crew was making. "And also a wedding planner, so it seems. John Casey, you sure are a man of many talents."

Wrapping an arm around her waist, he whispered in her ear, "You haven't even scratched the surface, darlin'."

"I repeat—incorrigible. So what have y'all done so far? Sarah said you were in command of the wedding—they were goin' to get the clothes."

"Place is secure—a stretch of beach along the coast. Setup's already started there. Reception will be courtyard; decorations and colors are planned."

"What color scheme?"

"Purples. Gardenias and begonias are in the bouquets. White roses too. There's a terrace set up on the beach—flowers and greenery interspersed between."

"Called the minister?"

"She's ready for the ceremony."

"Flowers will be ready?"

"Yep."

"But we don't have a cake."

"Not yet. But we'll—"

"—oh! Yes we do!" In a flash Beth dodged to her purse, throwing things out at random. "Now darn conflab it, where in the dilly did I put my—ah! My phone!"

She held up a hand to John while quickly dialing a number. It rang twice before someone picked up.

"Tomes and Treats, how can I—"

"Kate! I need your help."

"Beth? But don't you have a wedding to be attending?"

"No, well, yes, but not any—okay, it's a very complicated story. In short, Ellie's wedding was called off because it got rained on by the fire sprinklers in the church after some pyrotechnics got lit. Yes, because some idiot brought them to the wedding—I don't know how it happened. So, everyone was distraught and sad and, well, we're putting on another wedding. And most of the details are planned out, but…we have no cake."

"Say no more. What do I need to pick up?"

"You'll have the ingredients in your shop, right? We'll need tiers, and a topper. And I can make the fondue flowers—thank God for that bakery class. Let's see…I think that's everything, am I forgetting anything?"

"When I go to the store, I'll double check. You have a recipe?"

"I'll send it to your email. Meet you in twenty?"

"Sure thing. What's the time limit on this?"

"…trust me, you don't wanna know."

"Timeframe?"

"Tonight."

"We can do that. I'll leave the back keys under the mat—you come in and start the fondue; I'll still be out getting the ingredients. We'll whip this thing. You know how we baking types are."

Beth laughed, nodding to herself. "I certainly do, Kate. And I really appreciate this. I'll letcha go; we got ourselves a helluva workload cut out for us."

"That we do. See ya soon chika!"

She hung up the phone, and looked at John triumphantly. "There, we have a cake! Well, we have cake ingredients. We still have to make the cake."

John looked mildly surprised, and commented, "You can make a wedding cake?"

"You'll learn, Colonel, that you're not the only one with a few surprises up your sleeve."

"Enlighten me sometime. But not now, you need to be headin' over to Kate's, you got a cake to decorate."

She nodded, moving toward the door, pulling John along with her. "Ain't that the truth. I'll give ya a call when the cake's done? I'll have Kate deliver it to the courtyard; I'll have to be gettin' ready for the ceremony by then. Oh, and I'll leave my recipe book—you still need food for the reception. Simple finger foods would be best; don't have time for fancy faire. Don't suppose you're interested in accompanyin' me?"

"Got to stay with Roark and my men."

She heard the slight sadness in his tone, and smiled brightly enough for both of them. She knew he had his duties; he had his place, and she had hers. "No worries, next time I'm goin' to a weddin', I promise you, you _will_ be there, cause third time's a charm. I'll stop by before the wedding to say goodbye, if that's alright?"

He kissed her cheek, shoving her gently towards the stairs. "I'll hold you to that promise; now get. You've got a cake to make, and I've got—what the hell? I _told_ them that color was wrong." He turned back to find Beth already halfway up the stairs. She waved to him in parting, and laughed to herself when the last thing she heard before she exited into the Orange Orange was John's displeased voice saying, "Are you deaf soldiers? Maroon is _not_ an accompanying color to purple. Now you'll take this back and…"

* * *

And there we have it! So, John as a wedding planner-priceless, no? And Val...quite a woman, lol. Beth's making the cake and Sarah and AJ have been successful in nabbing the dresses-let's hope they haven't forgotten anything! Stay tuned for the next piece soon!


	14. Versus the Ring: Part 7

AC here! So apologies for tardiness in posting, however I think it worked out nicely for us to post a chapter today. What's today you ask? Well I'll tell you…after you enjoy this chapter. Thanks for the continued reviews and support, it means so much!

* * *

While Val was quickly making the appropriate adjustments to the wedding dress and to the three grey-blackish bridesmaids' dresses which she'd managed to dig up, Sarah checked in with Casey and AJ checked in with Chuck to see how the wedding plans were coming along.

"Yes, Chuck, I'm sure we've got Ellie's measurements written down correctly—"

"—Casey, I swear, they won't clash with your flowers."

"Of course it's something Ellie'd pick out; do you think that after all these years I seriously don't know what she likes—?"

"—I _told_ you, they're a dark gray, almost black, they'll go with anything."

"Six o'clock sharp, we'll be there—"

"—1800 hours, got it."

"See you soon, Chuck—"

"—Bye, Casey."

They both hung up, and shared a tired look.

"This wedding's going to be the death of us," AJ said.

Sarah nodded her agreement. "I just hope Ellie likes it."

"I'm sure she will. So your new mission with _Bryce_, excited?"

She shrugged. "It doesn't matter what I want; orders are orders."

"Of course it matters. Sarah, I know Bryce Larkin, and he's a nice guy, but he always put his goals ahead of his happiness, or the happiness of others. If you're happy with him, then by all means go with him. But if you're not, then you should stay in Burbank, with Chuck."

"I can't, AJ. I wish I could, but I can't."

"Sarah Walker, don't give me that merde. You can do whatever you want."

Before she could answer, Val emerged from the backroom of her shop with the finished dresses. The girls paid for them and headed back to Burbank, with AJ speeding worse than ever, not that Sarah seemed to mind. It was only when they pulling back into the apartment parking lot that AJ said, "Oh my God, what about the tuxedos?"

"What about them?"

"We didn't get any! But I don't think anyone else did either, I mean they're clothes, and we were in charge of clothes!"

"AJ—"

"I can't believe we forgot! Now we have to drive back to Val's, or just have the guys wear jeans!"

"AJ—"

"This is a disaster! First I wasn't able to stop the pyrotechnics and now—"

"AJ!"

"What?"

Sarah pointed towards the road, and AJ turned. Pedaling towards them was Morgan, and resting on his handlebars…tuxedos! They were wrapped in plastic, to keep them from getting dirty, but from what AJ could tell they'd match the bridesmaids' dresses perfectly.

"Morgan, you're brilliant!" she said, running up to meet him. She threw her arms around him in a hug as he pulled up.

He beamed and let AJ grab the tuxedos, following behind her with his bike. Sarah, who was loaded down with the dresses, brought up the rear. Several of Casey's men were in the courtyard, setting up for the reception and looking supremely out of place in their black unlabelled uniforms.

"Who are they?" Morgan asked.

"Professional party planners," Sarah answered, giving the men a curt nod. AJ winked at the men, and two of them smiled back at her. The third, however, merely scowled. AJ wondered vaguely what had his knickers all in a twist.

The thought left her mind the moment she entered Casa Bartowski. Ellie was sitting in the living room dressed in sweats, looking dazed. Chuck and Mr. B. were sitting next to her, trying to convince her that everything really was taken care of.

"But I don't understand, how can you have gotten together another wedding so fast? That's just not possible."

"Anything's possible for a Bartowski," AJ quipped, grinning at Mr. B. "Isn't that right, sir?"

"Not just for a Bartowski, it seems," he said, looking at the dresses in Sarah's arms and the tuxedos in AJ's. "One of those for me?"

"Si. Here you are, why don't you and Chuck go round up the rest of the men and go change over at my place?" I handed him my keys and the tuxedos.

Giving Ellie a final reassuring pat on the leg, Chuck went with his father, taking Morgan with them. Setting the dresses down in an armchair, Sarah took the spot Chuck had just vacated and AJ sat opposite of her on Ellie's other side.

"Is this really happening?" Ellie asked.

"It really is," Sarah said. "Come on, let's get you dressed before Honey shows up to help."

Ellie gave a weak laugh, then asked, "What about Beth?"

"Oh, she's just taking care of something. I'm sure she'll be here soon," AJ said.

* * *

"Is it done?"

"It's done."

"Does it look alright?"

Kate chuckled, giving Beth a tap on the shoulder. "Look yourself, why don't you? You made part of it!"

"I know, but I can't! What if it's atrocious? I'm so out of practice. And I saw the cake up close and so it could look bad from far away. And if it looks bad far away…"

Kate spun Beth around, laughing at the look of shock on Beth's face. "Oh my…damn…we are _good._"

The cake had four round layers, with lattice work on the second and fourth tiers with a garland flourish on the first and third. Pillars were between the second and third, where Ellie and Devon's wedding topper would go. Kate and Beth had both mixed and baked the batter, with Kate icing the whole thing and doing the garland; Beth working on the intricate purple and white flowers with green vines interspersed in the lattice. Beth knew the cake tasted all right—she snuck a lick of the butter cream icing, and Kate assured her the batter was delicious, raw eggs be damned. All in all, it was time consuming, tiring, and at times, panic-inducing, but they had it done. And it looked awesome.

Checking her watch, Beth gasped at the time. Shit! She needed to be at Ellie's to help get everything ready and put on her dress.

"Kate…"

"—go. The bride needs you. I'll deliver the cake to the courtyard later so it stays fresh. Do you have everything you need?"

"Yep. And I really can't thank you enough. If it weren't for the fact I'm an awesome yogurt worker, I'd totally join you in the bakery business."

"Well if you're ever in need of a job, you just come on over."

"I'll hold ya to that."

With one last wave, Beth hopped in her truck, speeding slightly excessively to reach the apartments. When she got there, she pulled into her normal spot, hopping out of her truck and passing by the setup already happening at the courtyard. She paused to look at the decorations; one of the men passed her by, remarking, "You changed; gotta say though, outfit still fits like a glove."

She shook her head, laughing. "Crawford, right? Thank God John isn't here to hear you say that—I have a feeling he'd be a little more than slightly displeased. The place looks really great; I'm impressed y'all were able to throw it all together so quickly."

"Marines—we're good for more than just fighting in the jungles of the world, facing the baddies. We're also exceptional wedding planners."

"So I noted. Speaking of weddings…I gotta get to the bride before the poor gal has a coronary."

"Then I won't hold you up…though, with your permission, may I ask you a question?"

She looked confused, but nodded at the grey eyed soldier in front of her. "Sure, shoot. Er, go ahead. I probably shouldn't be tellin' trained Marines 'shoot' very often."

"That's for sure; who knows what might happen?" He said with a wink. "In regards to my question, well, what is your relationship with the Colonel?"

"With John? Well…now that, soldier, is a rather long story. He falls under the category of roommate/friend/something."

"You two seemed _close_."

Beth blushed, shrugging her shoulders. "I can honestly say that's a new development. He's a good man, a fine colonel, and that is honestly all I'll say, cause I somehow don't think John'd be too pleased about others diggin' into his personal life; he likes his privacy. Plus, I'm pretty sure Ellie's on super freak-out mode right about now."

She started walking towards Ellie's door, pausing when she heard her name. Turning, she saw him awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck.

"Yes?"

"I was just wondering…would a guy like me have a chance with a woman like you?" At her widened eyes, he quickly corrected himself. "Not you, ma'am, Colonel would kill me. But, there's a girl back home; you remind me of her, and I was just wondering if I'd ever have a chance with her."

Smiling, she turned to face him fully. "Crawford, what's your given name?"

"Adrian."

"Well Adrian, I don't know ya well, but from what I've seen you're a hard-working, dedicated man. You obviously love your country and your comrades. You're a fine lookin' fella; any girl would be lucky to be on your arm. And if this lil' gal doesn't give you a chance, then she doesn't deserve you. That answer your question?"

"It does. Colonel Casey's lucky to have found you."

"Not nearly as lucky as I am to have found him. You take care of him for me, won't you? I don't rightly know where I'll be, and I'm not allowed to know where he'll be; I'd feel better knowing someone has his back."

"I'd die for him, ma'am."

Beth heard the rustling of feet outside the door and knew the gals must have spotted her. Before they opened the door, she left the soldier with one last sentence.

"I would too, Adrian, I would too."

* * *

The moment she saw Beth approaching the courtyard, AJ made a move towards the door. Blimey, they were cutting it close. Ellie was dressed and ready to go, and Sarah and AJ were both dressed minus the shoes, since AJ had yet to raid her closet for something appropriate and Sarah was going to have to borrow shoes from Beth, who luckily wore the same size give or take half a measurement.

Opening the door, AJ pulled Beth inside, giving her a hug. "How'd the cake turn out?"

"Sorry I'm late—we really cut it down to the wire, but the cake turned out beautifully; Kate was a huge help—she's gonna drop it off right before the reception. How'd dress shopping go?"

"See for yourself," AJ said, stepping back so Beth could see her dress. "Not bad, right?"

Beth glanced over the dark grey dresses, v-neck and backless; nice and flowy. "They look good! I'm impressed you found them; y'all did a good job. Now, I'm guessing…Sarah, you need a pair of shoes, don't you? And AJ, you'd better grab your shoes too; I'll go change real quick."

She grabbed her dress and headed to the bathroom, pausing to give Ellie a hug and kiss on the cheek. "You look stunning, Ellie. Don't you worry 'bout a thing—everything is all taken care of."

"Thanks Beth, I just, how did you guys…"

"—don't even ask. Just know that we're here for you; this is your special day and it's gonna be done _your way_. Well, this time. See? Some good has come out of a soggy noon wedding."

Ellie gave a soft laugh and nodded.

Soon the bridesmaids were all properly outfitted and Chuck had returned from AJ's apartment to chauffeur the bride. When the rest of the wedding party had cleared out, the girls checked in with the marines one last time before heading towards the parking lot.

In his usual style, Bryce emerged unexpectedly from the shadows. "Ladies."

Beth gave Sarah a look that said 'this is your problem, not mine'. She saw the way he was looking at Sarah; same look Chuck gave her, but Chuck was looking at the whole person; Bryce was simply looking at 'Sarah the Spy'.

"Bryce, fancy seein' you here. Nice day for marryin' isn't it?" Turning to Sarah and AJ, she gave an eye roll the man couldn't see, and nodded toward her truck. "Look, I promised John I'd stop by before I headed to the wedding, he wanted to know how the cake went and everything—meet you at the beach?"

Sarah nodded. "Sounds good—you'll be there in time?"

"Wouldn't miss it for the world!" She headed towards her truck, leaving AJ and Sarah to face Bryce.

Hands on her hips, AJ frowned at Bryce. "Y'know, we've really got to stop meeting like this."  
"What'd be the fun in that?"

She shook her head, not amused.

"What do you want, Bryce?" Sarah asked.

"I need to talk to you."

"Well, that'd be my cue to skedaddle then," AJ said.

"Not so fast; I need to talk to you too."

Great, just what AJ needed. "If you want to talk, get in the Jeep, Bryce." Turning to Sarah, she added, "You two can talk later. I'll see you at the wedding."

Smiling, Sarah got into her Porsche without comment and drove off.

"Well that was unnecessary," Bryce said.

AJ got in the Jeep, opening the passenger's side door for him. "I don't know, seemed necessary to me. It wasn't really fair for you to sneak up on Sarah like that."

"Sarah's a spy, she knows how to be quick on her feet."

"Sarah's not _just_ a spy; she's a person." Pulling out of the neighborhood, AJ asked, "What do you want?"

"You're Chuck's friend, and you know Sarah's not just a yogurt shop girl. I want you to talk to him, convince him to let her go."

Scoffing, AJ answered, "Like hell. Fake relationship or not, Chuck and Sarah have some real feelings for one another."

"It would never work. She's a spy and he's—"

"A Nerd Herder? Yeah, no thanks to you getting him kicked out of school. Shieße, if you hadn't, maybe he'd be the spy."

"He'd have never made it! Chuck isn't ruthless enough to be a spy, you know that. I was protecting him; I did him a favor."

Pulling off to the side of the road, AJ said, "Get out."

"What?"

"Get out. Now. You can walk the rest of the way to the wedding; I'm sure you can use you superb spy skills to figure out where it's at."

He bowed out, still smiling, and said simply, "I'll see you around."

"Don't count on it," AJ answered as she drove off.

* * *

Well that was fun, next chapter it's finally the wedding! And maybe even more interesting what happens after the wedding ;) As always, we'd love your thoughts on the chapter, the series, or even the weather, so please review if you get the chance. And oh, as for what today is, 6 months to the day LB and I actually started writing this here drabble, only a couple of days after we started this whole series. Pretty cool, huh?


	15. Versus the Ring: Part 8

Well hello dear readers, LB here, apologizing for the tardiness of putting up this chapter. But an extra long chapter compensates for some of the tardiness, right? No? Well...maybe not after you read the-well, you'll see. Anyway, as you know, we don't own Chuck; only Beth and AJ are ours'. Thank you so much for all the reviews y'all-you guys literally make our day when you review (seriously-we get a review and usually skype/text the other person with a simple 'New review! :D') We hope you like this chapter-there's only one more installment of VTR left after this, and then it's back to writing about Beth and AJ in our separate stories!

* * *

Beth carefully made her way down the steps of Castle. Damn the steps and damn the heels. Actually, her shoes were majorly more comfortable, but the dress was long and hard to maneuver in. But, she actually _liked_ this dress, and didn't exactly feel like ripping it accidently. Plus, Ellie would kill her. And Sarah. And AJ. The craziness of Castle had died down since the wedding was ready. John sat at the table, smoking a cigar and playing what looked to be blackjack. And he was winning. She caught her heel on the last step, and stumbled forward, causing the men to pause their game. Meeting eyes with John, she motioned to the back room, then headed that way. She knew he would follow; especially considering the dress she was wearing gave way to a rather liberal view of her back. She slipped into one of the changing rooms, smiling as John showed up.

"You win?"

"Depends, you my prize?" Taking a moment to look her over, he swallowed, murmuring, "You look beautiful."

"Thanks sugar. I'm pretty impressed Sarah and AJ managed to find the dresses. They're nice…drafty, but nice."

"Good thing the wedding's on a beach then."

John fell quiet, and Beth let herself relax in his arms. They both knew they were stalling. Neither wanted to say goodbye, but Beth didn't need to look at a watch to know she was running out of time.

"John…"

He looked at her, and she couldn't figure out the words to tell him goodbye—they were ending words, and what they had, or almost-had; well, she didn't want that to end. Crushing her lips to his, she let every emotion pour into him—the happiness, the worry, the care—everything was in that kiss. Finally pulling back, she blinked quickly to rid herself of the few tears that threatened. The girls would kill her if she messed up her make-up. And she needed to be strong. For herself, for John.

"You take care of yourself Colonel; I don't want any news saying you've lost any more limbs, got it?"

"I think I can handle that. Do you know where you're going yet?"

"Nothing official, the General hasn't said for sure. When I find out, I'll let you know…if there's some way I can contact you?"

"Number will be the same, you know that."

"I know…I, alright, here's the thing. I'm not going to tell you goodbye, because that implies a long time without seeing you, and whatever we are, whatever this relationship we've just entered into, well, I refuse to call it done or not give it a chance or whatever. So you promise me, John Casey, you promise me that you'll be safe and come back to me. No matter where you are, no matter how far away you are, I'm just a call away—I'm not giving up on this, I'm not giving up on _us._"

"As if I'd let you go, Tulip." He tightened his arms around her, murmuring into her hair his next words, "Not while I'm still breathing."

Beth could hear his heartbeat, the steady beat strengthened her. He smelled like…manliness. He always did. She could never pinpoint what it was that he smelled like—part gunpowder, part soap, and part, well, man. The hug ended, but John kept his arm around her waist as he escorted her to the entrance of Castle. She waved and said goodbyes to his men, most of them hollering a "Have fun at the wedding!" "Take care" or, in the case of Adrian, a "We'll take care of the Colonel!" John raised an eyebrow at her, and she shrugged.

"What? Your men are good people; I like 'em. Most of 'em are pretty friendly."

"Most?"

She didn't exactly want to tell him she thought one of his men was a creep, so she settled for, "Well, I didn't get a chance to know them all. But Adrian and Jeremy were both kind and helpful."

He grunted, and Beth laughed at him. "Please John, those 'boys' are nothing compared to the man I have in front of me. No need to be jealous."

He grunted again, giving her one last kiss before heading back down the stairs. She watched him head back to the poker table before opening the door and stepping into the familiarity of the Orange Orange. It'd probably be one of the last times she'd step into the good ole' yogurt shop. But she didn't have time to dwell. Not yet anyway. She had a wedding to get to.

* * *

Ellie looked beautiful, walking up the sandy aisle lined with flower pedals, Chuck on her left and Mr. B. on her right. Like most people, AJ zoned out during the wedding itself, focusing instead on the how in love Devon and Ellie looked, and how Sarah subtly shook her head in the direction of a grassy hill AJ felt sure Bryce was hiding behind, and how Beth seemed kind of melancholy despite obviously being pleased the wedding had turned out so well.

When it was over, AJ sped all the way back to the apartments to secure her parking spot before the rest of the wedding guests arrived. The Marines had cleared out; no doubt they were already on their way to some war zone or another. She made her way over to the fountain, taking a seat to watch the other guests arrive, and was soon joined by Beth.

"So, this shindig went pretty well, right? The ceremony was beautiful—everything went off without a hitch. What do you think that makes us?"

"The greatest bridesmaids in the world," AJ said with a laugh. "Mind you, we couldn't have done it without Casey and his Marines."

Beth smiled briefly before biting her lip. "You're right…they were amazing. Who knew Marines could even do that? But they did…y'know, I talked to a couple of them—they're really good people."

"Yeah, seemed like it. Oh look, here comes the hero of the hour. Hey, Chuck."

He picked up three drinks from the bar and took a seat between Beth and AJ, handing them each a drink. "I can't thank you guys enough."

"We're happy to help, Chuck. You're sister's a wonderful woman; she deserves a five star wedding, which, y'all certainly got. Are they mingling? Or are they too busy looking lovingly into one another's eyes?"

"I'm guessing it's the latter," AJ commented. "Can't blame them really. Listen you two, I'm gonna do a bit of mingling myself before I have to head to the airport."

"You'd better say goodbye before you leave," Beth said.

"Of course." AJ stood, and made a beeline towards Morgan, who was standing on his own, sipping champagne.

"So, guess this is the end of it all, huh? I mean, my sister's married, the Intersect is gone, I'm just…Chuck Bartowski. Casey's heading out with his men, and you're…actually, what are you going to do?"

"I'm not sure, actually. I have a feeling, well, now that I'm back to field work, I think Beckman's hankerin' to send me overseas for awhile…I'm hoping not, but if I'm right, I'll be headin' out to Poland." At the name of the destination, she scrunched up her face.

"Couldn't you just…stay? I mean, if you didn't want to go to Poland, you could always stay here, couldn't you?"

"It's not that simple; it never is. Besides, now that…well, I don't really have anything tying me to Burbank anymore."

"Of course you do! I mean, I'm here, and there's Ellie and Awesome. Burbank's a good place to live. And isn't your friend Kate still here too? It won't be so bad, even if some of the team is disassembled. Casey won't be gone forever, right? You could visit him or…"

"Chuck, that's real sweet of you, but I'm afraid visitin' John would be a lil' difficult—he's bein' sent somewhere in the Middle East, I think. It's deep classified black-ops; no one will really know where he is. But…I mean, he knows my number, he'd be able to call, right?"

"Exactly! He'll still be watching over you—I'm sure you two grew close—roommates and all. He'll be alright because he's Casey. I mean, nothing scares him."

"I know…that's what worries me. He—"

"Chuck, Morgan told me you were over here—oh, hey Beth, having a nice night?"

"It's pretty decent, Sarah, I can't complain. I'm guessing you'd like to dance with your man? He's all yours," she said with a wave of her hand.

Chuck lost no time in taking Sarah's arm and escorting her to where the other couples were swaying to a soft love song. Beth watched with a bit of envy. John was probably smoking another one of those cigars he liked while wiping the floor with his men during poker. Laughing and telling stories. What she wouldn't give to have just one dance with him. She could go to Castle but…no, she couldn't. He needed to keep his focus. He needed to be the gruff n' tough John Casey, not the big ole' bear he was with her. She felt eyes on her, and looked over to see Stephen Bartowski talking to Sarah and Chuck in an urgent manner. Sarah had her spy face on, then suddenly looked shocked. Well, shit. That couldn't be good.

* * *

"Can't believe you're actually leaving," AJ said to Morgan as she neared, clapping a hand on his back.

"I know, right? It's crazy."

"I'm proud of you, Morgan," AJ said, covering up a sigh by taking a sip of champagne.

"You are?"

AJ nodded. "Of course I am. You're gonna be the greatest Hibachi chef ever, and I expect you to cook for me when you're done with your training, alright?"

"And you're not mad that Anna's coming with me?"

Though not particularly fond of the champagne, AJ took another large gulp. She then proceeded to make a face and start coughing up a lung, holding up a finger for Morgan to wait a moment.

"AJ? Are you okay?"

"'M fine. Really, about Anna too. She and I might not get along, but if she makes you happy, then I'm happy for you."

Morgan smiled, pulling his old friend into a hug. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it," she answered, fighting back tears. "Listen, I need to get going soon, so we should probably go ahead and say our goodbyes now. Promise you'll take care of yourself."

"Only if you make the same promise."

"Promise…bye, Morgan."

"Bye, Ava."

AJ kissed his cheek, and she could swear he brushed his lips along her cheek in turn. Watery eyed, she moved away to look for the others, so she could get the rest of the farewells out of the way before it was time for her to leave.

* * *

Beth had to jump over two potted plants, dodge some couples, and ended up out of breath, but she was just in time to hear Sarah say, "Well if they know about Bryce they must know about Casey…"

"Sarah, what's going on?"

"Bryce was taken by enemies spies. And Casey's…"

"At Castle. With Roark. A mole must have…and John and Adrian and Jeremy and the men…f_uck!_"

Beth didn't bother waiting for Sarah to lead the brigade—she was in her truck and hollering for her to jump in as she was peeling out of the parking lot. Her mind was rushing…she couldn't think. Not John, not her John…oh God. She worried he'd get injured or killed in whatever small lil' terrorist cell he was gonna be kickin' butt in, but she never thought he'd be in danger before he even left. Who could it have been? Who would have done—

"Beth! Watch the road!"

She pulled a hard right, almost overshooting the Orange Orange. Mumbling an apology to Duke for her harsh driving, she pulled into a parking spot, and was heading inside as Sarah talked.

"You have to focus. He could be fine."

"Yeah, and he could be lyin' in there covered in blood, shot to death, silenced with a bullet. There are too many scenarios to think of. And I _am _focused."

Although Sarah got to the door first, Beth practically bowled her over going down the stairs, but when she hit the bottom, she jerked to a stop. Oh my…bodies. Oh God in heaven above. She recognized Jeremy's dark hair, and her heart stopped. Jeremy, Adrian, and one other man lay dead, slumped over their game of poker. Where was John? He couldn't be—she spotted him on the ground, and choked back a sob.

"John!"

By his side in a minute, she cradled his head, not able to stop the tears from falling. Why wasn't he moving? She didn't see any bullet wounds—he should have been moving. What kind of a monster did this? Killed three Marines in cold blood, and left their commander…in whatever state he was in.

"John, sugar, you gotta wake up. You gotta talk to me, baby. You can't be a big ole' grouchy bear when you're not talking. Don't you dare die on me now, or I swear to all things good and holy I will walk right up there to heaven and drag you back to your body just so I can kick your ass. Please John, just—"

He groaned, and she let out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding.

"What the hell…_Miles_. Beth, what…?"

"Bryce was taken by enemy spies. Whoever did it had to know about you too. I should have been here—I was gonna stop in, I should have, I could have helped. They could have lived—they didn't deserve to die, I mean, Jeremy was such a sweetheart, and Adrian had a lil' gal he was goin' after and I should have been here, I could have helped. I could have—" She took a shuddering breath, biting her lip to keep composure, shaking her head every once in awhile, her arms protectively wrapped around her body.

John sat up, his head slightly throbbing, but that wasn't his primary concern right now. They needed to get to Larkin, and he needed Beth to calm down. She wasn't going to be of use to anybody if she hyperventilated and passed out. When he finally tuned into what she was saying, his heart gave a jolt—did she really think she should have been here? She would have been killed. He made mental note: they would be having a conversation over that, but later—right now they had a mission to complete.

He reached for her, holding her hands. "Breathe, Tulip. It's alright."

"I should be telling that to you! You—you could have…and," She flung her arms around him, speaking into his neck. "Thank God you're alright. I don't know what—I mean, if you'd…I thought I'd lost you."

"Pull yourself together, Beth—mission's not over yet." His words were uncharacteristically harsh, and she flinched, but nodded. All he wanted to do was pull her closer to him, but Walker was watching their interaction rather closely—a little too closely.

"I'm…I'm good. You're right; we've gotta whip this thing. You need some ice for that bump; bet it hurts like a mother. Sarah, fill him in on the situation please?"

She nodded and Beth went to grab the ice. By the time she returned, John was up off the floor and they had moved to the back room, away from the eerily chilling scene in the main room. Passing the ice to John, she spoke.

"So, what's the plan?"

"You're not going to ask what happened?" Sarah questioned.

In a cold voice, Beth responded. "Don't have time. All I need to know is three Marines were murdered in cold blood—that's three less heroes the U.S. now has. By the fact Miles is neither dead in the other room nor was he found injured with John, I think it's safe to assume he's the reason. So now we grab our guns, suit up, and go kill the bastards who did this, all the while saving Larkin while we're at it. Now are we headin' out or what?"

John and Sarah both looked at her with something akin to surprise, but she had no time for it. They had a man to save, and an enemy to take down. Sarah nodded, and they left the back room just as Chuck practically flew through the doorway.

"Hey, I'm coming with you."

John disagreed. "You stay here; it's not your mission."

"Wait! This is the Intersect we're talking about, and I'm a Bartowski." Showing the group the arm bracelet Mr. Bartowski designed; he finished with, "You need me."

John gave the others a 'well, moron's got a point' look, and Beth nodded her head.

"Sounds like as good a plan as any—we're gonna need all the help we can get. Now let's go kick some ass."

* * *

"What's going on, Mr. B.?" AJ asked, having witnessed Beth and Sarah's frantic departure, with Chuck leaving right after them. "More trouble?"

"You could say that," he said, looking grave. "I didn't want any of you involved with this business, but Charles—"

"—is in love with Sarah." AJ finished. "And Sarah's a spy through and through."

He nodded.

"I don't like it either, sir, but the heart wants what the heart wants, and Sarah's a great girl. She'll protect him."

"Yes, I suppose so. So what about you?"

"What about me?"

"Thinking of going after them?"

AJ laughed. "Nah, I wouldn't be of much help."

"Oh, I don't know, I'm sure your skill set could come in handy."

Raising an eyebrow, AJ said, "I thought you wanted me to stay away from all this spy business?"

"Oh, I do, you and Charles both, but—" Mr. B. shrugged. "It's a calling. There's nothing I can do about that."

"Well, no need to worry about me, it's not my calling," AJ reassured him.

Mr. B. nodded again, though he didn't look quite convinced.

"Seriously, I'd make a horrible spy. Between my wanderlust and my rebellious streak, they'd boot me out of the CIA faster you could blink. Besides, I'm not strong like Casey, super observant like Beth, or have freakish skills with knives like Sarah does. Why would they ever want to recruit me in the first place?"

"First of all, the government prizes candidates who enjoy travel and can think for themselves. And second of all, they recruited me for my computer engineering skills; they could easily recruit you for the same reason. Don't sell yourself short."

"Thanks, sir, I'll keep that in mind if I'm ever approached by the government," AJ said. "Anyway, I came over to say goodbye."

"You're really leaving then?"

Nodding, AJ said, "It's for the best. Besides, I always said this was temporary. I never planned on putting down roots."

"But you did anyway."

"I—" AJ couldn't really deny it, as much as she may have wanted to. Itchy feet aside, she liked living in Burbank, with her friends as coworkers and neighbors. And really, once she'd gotten caught up in trying to figure out the others' secret, she'd completely forgotten about her itch to travel. Instead of answering, she diverted. "How about you? Planning on sticking around for a while?"

"Only until Eleanor and Devon get back, they asked me to watch their apartment for them."

"Mind keeping an eye on my place while you're at it?"

"You're not selling it?"

AJ shook her head adamantly. "No way, too many memories. Besides, I'll need a place to stay if I ever come back to visit."

"To visit, right." Mr. B. smiled knowingly. "Of course I'll keep an eye on it for you."

Hugging him, AJ said, "Thanks. It was so good seeing you again."

He hugged her back. "You too, Ava. Now, Charles and Eleanor already now how to get in touch with me if they need to, but in case you run into trouble overseas, I want you to take this." Mr. B. pulled out a flash drive from his pocket and handed it to AJ.

"What is this?"

"The names and contact information of a few of my international associates from the old days. You need anything, you get in touch with them and tell them I sent you, and they'll help you out. Now, the information's heavily encrypted, but I have no doubt you'll be able to handle that."

"I can't take this," AJ said, trying to hand the thumb drive back. "It's too much, sir, really, I'll be alright."

"Keep it anyway, just in case. I have no use for it anymore anyway. One more thing, remember what I told you about the floppy drive on your old computer? You might want to check that before you leave."

Nodding, AJ said, "Thank you. Really, you've always been too kind to me."

"You're a talented young woman," Mr. B. said in parting. "You'll find your place."

"Until next time, sir," AJ said, shaking his hand.

"Until next time."

* * *

John and Sarah took the lead through Intersect headquarters, while Beth was in back to guard the rear, leaving Chuck sandwiched someplace between the three of them, guarded on all sides. The building was silent—it gave Beth a definite sense of unease. Holding his hand up to halt them, John moved forward slightly, pulling back when gunfire sounded, the bullets narrowly missing him.

They shot in tandem—hitting some, but Beth knew they weren't making headway; no one could get a decent shot out due to the confined space; plus, there were so many of them. Sarah told Chuck to get help, and he left, leaving three guns versus lord knew how many. A bullet grazed Beth's right arm, and she hissed, whipping around out of sight.

"Hells bells!"

"Beth?" "Tulip!"

She waved off both of her team's concerns. "I'm fine, it's just a graze."

"You should wrap—"

"Don't have time, big bear; in case you're unaware, we're kinda under fire here. I'll be just fine."

She flexed her arm slightly, deciding it didn't hurt too much, and went back to shooting. They were holding their own when footsteps started coming from the other direction. Letting out a slew of expletives in Russian, she spun on her heel, but was stopped when one of the men grabbed her, gun placed to her temple.

"Guys, we gotta problem."

Sarah and John both turned, ready to shoot, but lowered their weapons when they saw Beth's predicament. One of the armed guards spoke.

"Drop your weapons. Or she dies."

No one moved. Beth tried to get John to look at her, trying to communicate that it'd be okay to shoot the ass who had her; she'd live. But he didn't get that, because after sharing a look with Sarah, they both placed their weapons on the ground. The men started herding the three forward in the hall until they arrived at an open doorway, its insides pure white with one computer in the center. The Intersect 2.0, Beth would guess. Nothing else it could be. When they were walking inside, Sarah looked over, saw Bryce's dead body, and rushed to his side. Beth closed her eyes, whispering a prayer that he was in a better place; she knew sacrifices had to be made, and she didn't know him all that well, but a life was a life. Too many people had died. And on account of what? Some special program a group of rogue agents decided would better themselves and their plan to take over the world?

Humanity was so selfish sometimes. And it really miffed her. Once they were in, Miles ran to the machine, attempting to gain access only to find out Chuck had destroyed it. Cursing, he turned but paused when Casey spoke, a smirk firmly in place.

"So you lose."

"Know this, no one stops us. No one ever has."

"…til now."

Miles looked over to Beth, his eyes widening slightly in recognition.

"Well if it isn't the Colonel's catch. I see you've put on more clothes since the last time we saw each other…when was that again—ah yes, wedding preparations, weren't they?"

"You mean right before you murdered three Marines, honorable men who didn't deserve to die? You didn't even have the guts to face 'em; you're nothin' but a yellow-bellied coward."

He walked closer, and she willed herself not to back down. No way was she going to let some cowardly killer unnerve her. Stopping in front of her, he slowly raised a hand to her face before swiftly slapping her. John growled menacingly while Beth looked up, fire in her eyes.

"You should show a little more respect when one of the best spies stands in front of you," Miles said.

Beth gave him a glare, shaking her head. "The only thing I see is some low-life, pathetic excuse for a human being who, either for the money or the power trip, betrayed his country and his men. Did you even care that those men had families? They were more than just a uniform. There's a very special hell waiting for you. Gods you're revolting." He reached for her, and she spat at him, eyes shining with defiance.

"You little—"He grabbed her chin, and she swung her right fist around, effectively connecting with his nose. Bringing her leg up, she managed to give him a couple good kicks to the groin before a shot rang out.

Sarah and John watched in horror as Beth sunk to the ground; neither happened to notice Chuck stumbling around. John dropped beside her; the guards made to stop him, but Miles waved them off.

"Not so high and mighty now, are you _Colonel_?"

"She dies, Miles, and I swear to God, I'll kill you with my bare hands," he ground out, voice resonating with fury.

"No one's…gonna…kill 'im… 's my job."

Looking down, John saw Beth struggling to get up, her shirt starting to turn more maroon than black. Setting Beth's head in his lap, he started ripping away her shirt, revealing an ugly bullet wound in her left shoulder. He used part of her shirt to staunch the blood, while smoothing back her hair.

"What were you thinking, woman? Of all the times to lose that redheaded temper of yours…"

In the background, Beth could hear someone say, "He uploaded it" and she watched as John looked up with surprise and muttered, "Oh Chuck me." That...couldn't be good. She tried to shift so she could see what was going on, but John stopped her.

"Don't move—you'll irritate the wound."

"Think…it's…irritated 'nough."

His voice was gruff when he answered, "You think?"

She closed her eyes…it hurt. A lot. She wanted to sleep, but knew she couldn't. She heard quite the commotion, and managed to ask a mumbled, "What's goin' on?" to John. When he didn't answer, she forced herself to open her eyes, and watched in shock as Chuck, who to her knowledge had never taken one karate lesson, was whipping out all the best moves in the book. When the fight was over, Chuck was left standing in the middle of the room, looking at his hands in shock. She felt more than heard John's surprised grunt while Sarah, who was still standing, then took one step toward her cover boyfriend. "Chuck?"

Looking at his hands again, and then at the unconscious men around him, he finally looked towards the three agents.

"Guys, I know kung-fu."

Unable to fight it anymore, Beth muttered, "Holy hell" before passing out.

* * *

AC here, figured I'd take the bottom note since *Someone shot their character* so you may be a little bit upset at her right now (I know I am-and I've known this was coming for at least a month). Anyway, please review and let us know what you thought? It might motivate us to post the last chapter a bit sooner. ;)


	16. Versus the Ring: Part 9

So hi guys, LB here, also known as the person who...shot Beth. :o I know, I know...a lot of you probably wanted to shoot _me_ at that point, but...well, in my defense, can I just say I had to shoot her? AC doesn't seem to think that's a legitimate reason...but I digress. You know the drill: Beth & AJ: ours, Everyone else (practically): not ours'. Right, now that that's outta the way, first, I wanted to say writing this has been an awesome ride-nine parts later, and our Versus the Ring co-op is done! Kinda amazing. And kinda like...whoa. Second, I wanted to thank everyone who's been reading this-the fact y'all have stayed with us is amazing and really makes us happy. I hope you've enjoyed it as much as we have!

* * *

"Merde, this is ridiculous," AJ muttered to herself, wiping her eyes. She'd said goodbye to the bride and groom, then had made her exit. She'd forgotten to set aside clothes to change into, so she'd run upstairs quickly and pulled on the first thing she could find, which happened to be her Nerd Herd uniform. Forgoing her tie and ID, the white blouse and gray skirt were inconspicuous enough. After adding a well-worn pair of classic black Converse to the equation, AJ had hung her bridesmaid's dress in the closet and had headed out, but not before checking the floppy drive of her old laptop. Inside she'd found a disk of some kind, though she hadn't had a chance to look at what was on it. Now she was sitting in the parking lot, waiting for a cab and trying to convince herself she was making the right decision.

"Somebody call a cab?"

AJ looked up to find a cabbie sticking his head out of the driver's seat window of his taxi.

"Yeah, that's me." Grabbing her duffel, she tossed it onto the backseat before climbing in herself.

"Where to?"

Where to indeed. For a moment, AJ thought about going to the Orange Orange to make sure the others were alright. Maybe Mr. B. was right; maybe she could help. But no, that's what they did for a living, they'd be fine. Still, she was running early, and she didn't particularly want to spend hours at the airport.

"Holy Cross Cemetery please."

"You got it."

Sitting back, AJ looked out the window without really looking, the streets were so familiar. Memories blurred together as she thought about biking to the movies with Chuck and Morgan and driving with them to work. She thought about having yogurt with Beth and Sarah discussing their love lives and having lunch with Mr. B. as they discussed the mechanics behind televisions. She thought about going to the beach with the Bartowskis and going to the Buy More employee picnic with her friends. So many memories, spread through time. It was sad to think about leaving the place where they had all taken place.

"We're here."

AJ sighed, and nodded to the cab driver. "Thanks. Would you mind waiting? I won't be long, and I'll pay you double for any inconvenience."

"Sounds fair to me."

With a slight smile, she stepped out of the vehicle and walked past the open gate into the churchyard. Though she missed her Gran daily, she hadn't been to visit since the burial, not wanting to dwell on the monumental loss any more than necessary. Now though, well, she didn't know when she'd get the chance to drop by again.

She found the tombstone easily enough. It wasn't too hard, considering there weren't any other graves with giant lobsters for headstones. AJ laughed a little when she remembered the look on her family's face when they'd first seen it.

"You always were a helluva lady," AJ said, carefully taking a seat in the grass with her skirt fanned around her crossed legs. "Hey, Gran. How've you been?"

Running a finger over the intricately carved word "Grandmother" on the lobster's side, AJ gathered her thoughts as the tears began to fall. It had been seven months; it shouldn't still hurt as bad as it did.

"I miss you, Gran, so much. 'M sorry I didn't bring flowers; partly it was because I didn't know I was coming and partly it was because I remember you thought bringing flowers to a grave was kind of stupid anyway. I remember when Father found out you'd told the groundskeeper back in Maine to stop putting flowers on Pops' grave, boy was he mad. But anyway, that's not why I'm here.

"Truth is, I'm here to say thank you. I dunno why you never told me Chuck and Ellie still lived at the Bartowskis' old place, but it's sure been nice seeing them and Morgan again. That's why you left me the apartment, isn't it? Because you knew I'd find them again. You always were ten steps ahead of the game."

Breaking off, AJ picked at the unruly grass below the lobster's legs for a moment before continuing. "I made some new friends too, you know. Ellie's husband, Awesome, and Chuck's girlfriend, Sarah, for starters. And then you know that gruff guy who lived next door to you, Casey? Turns out he's not so bad, and his roommate Beth's really sweet. They're good people, all of them, and I had so much fun getting to know them, whether it was for the first time or all over again.

"Plus, guess what? Casey and Sarah and Beth and Chuck, they're all spies. Oh, and Mr. B. too. Can you believe that? Half the people I know are honest to goodness secret agents. But I bet being as smart as you were, you already knew that."

The thought caused AJ to pause. Had her Gran known? There was no way of knowing for sure, but it did make her wonder if Mr. B. had been onto something when he'd been talking about having a calling.

"I guess you're wondering why I'm leaving then, if everything's so great. But the thing is everyone's leaving. Beth and Sarah and Casey are all getting reassigned, and Chuck's looking for something new to do. And Morgan, well, do you remember Morgan? He and his girlfriend are moving to Hawaii. I don't like her. I bet you didn't either. But the point is they're all leaving, and well, aren't I supposed to be the one who leaves? I've never been the one who's left behind before, have I? 'Cept by you. You left me here, and now you can't tell me what to do. So I'm gonna do the only thing I know how to do and leave before I'm left."

Sniffling, AJ hugged the stainless steel lobster.

"I wish you were still here to guide me. I miss you, and I love you. Maybe…maybe I'll come back someday, but I can't say for sure. So until then, take care of yourself, okay?"

Full on crying now, AJ let go of the lobster and stood, blowing a kiss towards the ground.

"You okay?" the cabbie asked when she stepped back into the taxi, passing her a box of Kleenex.

"I'll be fine," AJ assured him.

"Where to then?"

"The airport, please. And step on it."

When they arrived, AJ paid him and, duffel in hand, made her way inside. Because she was taking a redeye there weren't many people around, so it was all too soon that she found herself boarding the plane. As it took off, she found that she was tearing up once more. Catching her last glances of Burbank in the darkened window, she tried to convince herself that she'd made the right choice. "It was time for me to go," she said to no one in particular. "I had to go."

* * *

Beth woke up to a darkened room. Feeling around, she noted she was in her own bed, in her own room. She vaguely remembered going to the hospital for her shoulder, and then getting in a car to go home. Everything else was a bit fuzzy though. She tried to get up, and fell back with a slight 'oomph'. Damn shoulder. Lying back, she noticed it was heavily bandaged, and she was wearing…well, it wasn't any of her clothes, whatever she was wearing. But she didn't have time to think of that—she was hungry, and wanted food. Making sure not to disturb her wounded shoulder, she started to get up again, only to fall back in surprise when her roommate's stern voice sounded to the left of her.

"Just where do you think you're going?"

Well hell, why on earth was he on that side of the room? She sat up, turning fully in bed to look at John. He was lying as best he could be a fold-up bucket chair, his legs stretched in front of him with his arms crossed behind his head. He turned her way, but didn't make a move to get up.

"Well, I'm plannin' on gettin' up to grab a drink. And somethin' to eat."

"You need your rest."

"It's just a shoulder wound—I'll be fine. Isn't that chair a bit uncomfortable?"

He growled slightly at the mention of it being 'just a shoulder wound', finally standing up to move over towards the bed.

"Not as painful as getting shot. What the hell were you thinking?"

"You know, you say that an awful lot to me."

Sitting down next to her, John kissed her forehead. "You could have gotten yourself killed."

"I…" she paused, looking down at the covers. "I lost it. I couldn't stand the thought of him smirking, acting as if everything was fine when there were three men who'd never get to smile again. My temper snapped. And he could have…he could have killed you. He _did_ hurt you. I couldn't let him get away with it."

"He wasn't going to get away with it."

"I know, I just, I mean, he _killed _those Marines. Didn't even bat an eye. How could he _do_ something like that? I mean, I've seen some pretty bad things—it's all part of the job, but to, for lack of a better term, assassinate them? And not even look 'im in the eye…it's inhuman. It's horrible…they were good men. Adrian, he, we talked when I was at the apartment—he asked me if—" She broke off, her voice shaking slightly. "They were good men. They had so much of their life left, and it was just…snuffed out. I hate it. I hate it so much. And I could have been there. I could have been there to help—I thought about stopping by after the wedding—I had free time and it wouldn't have taken long. If I'd joined you…"

"Don't even think it, Beth. Had you been there, that traitor would have killed you too."

"But I could have—"

"—You _couldn't_ have. If he had no problems shooting three Marines point blank, do you think he'd have a problem killing one CIA agent?"

She pulled her legs to her, resting her head on her knees. "I know but…I knew something was up with him! I didn't trust him; I should have said something. But instead, I just chalked it up to him being shy and didn't say anything and now four good men are dead and I couldn't even help! I mean, Jeremy had a family back in Louisiana; Adrian had his eye on a gal back home—I didn't even get to know the third man. And he killed Bryce too. It just isn't fair!"

She hugged her knees closer to her, as best she could with her shoulder bandaged, and broke into quiet tears. Wrapping his arm around her, John cradled her to him, mindful of her injury. His next words were quiet, but they held a no-nonsense tone.

"Life isn't fair, Tulip. Good men die all the time—it's something we fight every day. We fight to protect others, including men like Crawford and Thompson. Maybe if you had mentioned your suspicions, something would have been different, but more than likely, nothing would have changed."

Beth stayed silent, just looking down at her covers, and John sighed. It would take time before she accepted what he said—he knew her well enough to know that. A slight change of subject, he chuckled, saying, "Have to admit, you gave him some good hits—broke his nose."

She managed a small smile, shrugging. "He deserved it. I hope my groin hits were just as good."

"I have a feeling they were solid; you didn't get to see it, but he fell to his knees with your last kick."

"Good. I hope I kicked 'im so hard he choked on his balls."

John looked at her in surprise, and she blushed. Admittedly, she didn't use that phrase often, but in this situation, it fit.

"Never thought I'd hear you say such a phrase."

"Hey! I'm not all sweet and innocent."

"Yeah, you're a real streetwalker, aren't you?"

She laughed, reaching for his hand and entwining her fingers with his.

"John?"

He turned at her words—though she had just been laughing, her voice had turned serious.

"What is it Beth?"

"I—you…when I thought I lost you, I only wanted to, but you—aw, hells bells. I'm not being very articulate, am I?"

"No, but I'm enjoying watching you try."

"I just, well, with Chuck having the Intersect again, does this mean…you're staying?"

"Haven't talked to Beckman yet officially, but the answer's probably yes. What about you?"

"I'm still—I don't know. I know Beckman had something planned, but I don't know what. I stand by what I said earlier though—no matter where we are, I wanna try and make…whatever this thing we have is, well, I wanna make it work."

John raised an eyebrow. "This thing?"

"Well, yeah, cause I don't really—I mean, we were roommates, and then friends, and then we kissed, but then you were leaving and I was leaving and—"

He cut her off mid-sentence, placing a finger to her lips. "Be my girlfriend."

Her lips parted in surprise. She stared at him, and he continued. "Say you'll be my girlfriend. Simplifies this 'thing' as you're calling it. So…will you?"

Smiling, Beth used her good arm to pull him closer to her, kissing him before pressing her forehead to his.

"John Casey, nothin' would make me happier in the world than bein' your girl. My only question is why did it take you so long to ask?"

* * *

AC here, hey LB, wasn't it my turn to write the A/N? Lol, only joking. So, there you have it, the end of VTR. AJ's gone, Beth's leaving...& Beth & Casey are officially a couple! Review & let us know what you thought? Pretty please? It'd make our day! Also, if you're sad to see this end (I know I am), never fear. Next up we have a shorter co-op & a return to our individual pieces on CVTCS:Beth & CVTCS:AJ. So thanks for reading, & I hope you continue to enjoy Chuck Versus the Chuckless Summer.


	17. Late Night Latte: Part 1

Hey all, this is AC, with part 1 of 3 of our next co-op which also kicks off season 3 in the CVTCS-verse. Apologies for the delay, we have no good excuse except we're hard at work writing on individual drabbles for y'all to enjoy. Anyway, thanks as always for all your amazing reviews & for reading, usual disclaimers apply, & enjoy!

* * *

"Jeden latte, dodatkowe duże, proszę," AJ said to the young lady manning the counter of the coffee shop she'd just walked into. Her flight from Florence had been delayed, so that she'd gotten to Warsaw hours later than she'd planned and exhausted to boot. Sometimes she wondered how she'd survived her first world tour, constantly moving around from place to place. Maybe she'd stay in Warsaw for a while, if only to catch up on sleep.

"AJ?"

Beth thought she was going crazy when she spied the brunette from her corner table; she dismissed it as a simple coincidence. But when the woman turned, Beth knew it had to be her. Heck, she should know. She spent the last year in the gal's presence. Protocol advised against approaching, but that didn't stop her. Yep, standing in front of her, now looking at her with a shocked expression was one AJ Abbott, former Nerd Herder and Orange Orange's true-blue customer.

"_Beth_? Is that you?"

No, it couldn't be. Beth had curly red hair, and was off saving the world…somewhere else that wasn't Warsaw. This woman, her hair was brown and straightened, pulled up in a bun. Still, the face was the same, and really who would call her AJ? It had to be Beth.

Laughing, Beth nodded. "Yep, it's me all right. Look a lil' different to you I expect. 'Fraid part of the job required some…changes." She made a face, gesturing to her hair. "It was this or blonde—I figured bein' a brunette would make me a bit more sophisticated. That's what the stereotype says anyway. What're you doin' in Warsaw?"

AJ pulled up a seat, still trying to reconcile the fact that her redheaded friend and the brunette sitting in front of her were one and the same. "I, um, never made it here the last time around, somehow managed to travel all around Poland without stopping in the capital, and I was in Italy, so I figured close enough, right? Never thought I'd find you here though!"

"Honestly, I didn't expect to be here either. I'd have preferred someplace more…well, not Poland. Not a lot _in_ Poland, personally. Plus, I have to deal with," She paused, rolling her eyes, "juveniles. Like children they are—'Can we do this?' 'Why we gotta get in so early?' 'I got lost on the train again; do I have to come in today?' It's enough to drive a gal to drink. But, it'll get better—it's only a temporary assignment…I hope. Then I'll be back, well, who knows, but I'll be back. But enough 'bout me, chattin' like I'm the only one here. How long are you here for? If you're here more than a day or two, you should check out this lil' place on the other side of town—Sondra says it's got some good yogurt—I wouldn't know, obviously."

"Actually, my schedule's pretty open; I was thinking of staying a while, and I'll definitely have to check out the yogurt, though I doubt it can compare to the deliciousness you used to serve up at the Orange Orange." AJ paused as her coffee was brought over. "Dziękuję. Będa mogli i jeden z tych wypieków widziałem na przeciw zbyt proszę? Dzięki tak wiele."

"You speak Polish?" Beth asked.

AJ shrugged, accepting the pastry she'd ordered with a dziękuję. "A bit."

"Sounded like more than a bit to me."

Smiling, AJ said, "Eh, I've picked up a little over the years. Anyway, sounds like you've got your hands full. I don't suppose you've had a chance to go back ho—to Burbank then?"

"Not ye—well, no. Went to the States though—it was nice to be on American soil, but…"

"…but?"

She sighed, running a hand through her hair. "It wasn't the same. Whole lotta politics in the sp—in my job. Had forgotten about it when I was in Burbank. Had forgotten 'bout a lot of things, actually. What about you? Stopped in to visit yet?"

AJ shook her head. "No point really. I mean most everyone's gone anyway. Besides, I'm living the good life, traveling the world again, going where the wind blows. It's great."

Beth noticed her smile wasn't nearly as enthusiastic as it should have been. Taking a sip of her coffee, she casually asked, "So, ya haven't talked to Morgan then, I take it?"

"What? No! I mean, well, why would I talk to Morgan?"

Giving her a piercing stare, she pretended to think about it for a moment. "Hmm…let me think about this—maybe because you've been friends since you were…ten and are just a lil' bit irrevocably in deep like with him?"

"I'm not in love with him, Beth, that's crazy!" AJ said, trying to hide her blush behind her coffee cup.

"I never said love," Beth answered, smirking.

Well…merde. Time to divert. "What about you? Have you kept in touch with Casey then?"

The now-brunette fiddled with her coffee cup, debating how much to say. Well, it couldn't hurt to tell the truth, could it? It wasn't like anything could be inferred by keeping in contact; they _had _been roommates. She finally nodded, her answer a simple, "He calls."

AJ raised an eyebrow. "_He_ calls? How often?"

At her question, Beth bit her lip, but couldn't conceal her smile. "Yes, _he_ calls. Is that so shocking? As for how often, well…mosteveryday." She said the last all in a rush, maybe in the hopes AJ wouldn't hear her.

But she did. "John Casey calls you every day? A man like Casey calling everyday—if that isn't love, mój przyjaciel, then I don't know what is," AJ said, shaking her head in disbelief. "You're a lucky woman."

She ducked her head down, half shrugging. "I wouldn't say that's love. Just…I mean, he probably gets lonely. I mean, I do. It's good to know how he's doing—he calls at the beginning of his day, so I can ask him how the day before was, whereas he asks me about the present day, cause I'm halfway through my day by the time he calls. But I _am_ lucky. He's a good man." She paused for a second. "Er, friend. Man friend," she finished lamely.

"Yes, I'm sure he's a good man friend," AJ said with a laugh. "Though I'd like to point out that none of my man friends, or friends in general, call me daily. Or at all."

"Well that might be kind of challenging considering none of us have your cell phone number," Beth pointed out.

"I don't have yours either," AJ retorted, before waving her hand impatiently. "But that's not the point. The point is Casey wouldn't just call because he's lonely."

"Well…"

"There's something you're not telling, isn't there? Because you _know_ Casey never does anything without a reason."

"Um, well, we were roommates, right? And then there was that whole wedding incident, and it kinda brought us closer together, and it may technically have something to do with the fact that hekissedme, but I'm not really sure about—"

"—_He kissed you?_" Everyone else in the bar shushed AJ, so lowered her voice and repeated, "He kissed you?"

"Well, yes?"

"When? Where? I want details!"

Making sure the rest of the shop's occupants weren't focusing on their conversation, she took another sip of coffee before speaking. She was gonna need it. "When: Five days before the wedding. Um, not that I have it memorized or anything. Right, anyway! Onto the where—our kitchen."

"Details! I'm assuming you didn't just kiss him out of the blue."

"Well, not exactly. Though that might be close to the truth. I woke up when I normally do, and John was just walking through the front door—he'd gone practically a two and a half hour's drive to pick up my favorite pancakes. And then, well, okay, he had blueberry pancakes and I had chocolate, and I made him take a bite of mine, because I said they were better. And he disagreed, saying his were, so I kinda stole a bit of his. And then we were really close together, and I kissed him. And he kissed me back."

"You kissed over breakfast? That's adorable! Wait, he drove two and a half hours just to get you pancakes? That's serious!"

"No, it's not," Beth said, hastily taking another sip of her coffee.

"Yes, it is," AJ insisted. "If it's only a crush, then you drive to the nearest McDonald's to pick up a breakfast burrito. But that long of a drive just because he knew those were your favorite pancakes? Face it, you two might as well announce your engagement."

Ignoring the comment, Beth gestured to AJ. "Enough about me—where have you traveled? You said you were headed to Dubai, so how'd you end up in Warsaw? I promise you—it's not that great. Have you acquired any more of those foreign boys you were so fond of? Didn't run into Javier by chance, have you?"

"No, I didn't run into Javier," AJ said testily. "Haven't acquired any more foreign boys either. I spent a week in Dubai, then hopped a plane to Istanbul for a few days before going to Corfu then Florence and then here. Actually, it's been pretty dull."

"That's dull?" Beth said. "I haven't been to half of those places, and I'm a—in a business that involves a fair amount of travel. So why no foreign men?"

"Just haven't felt like finding anyone is all."

"Or is it that the one man you want is definitely Americanized and halfway across the world?"

"Americanized isn't a word," AJ pointed out.

"Actually, it is. And you're deflecting. I already know you like Morgan. You just have to admit it to yourself. And if his actions indicate anything—he likes you too. Maybe it's just not time for you two to be together. Well, that, or you're both too stubborn to let yourselves be together."

"He doesn't like me," she replied lifelessly.

"Like hell he doesn't! Have you realized that Morgan has a tendency to do things he wouldn't wanna do only if you ask him? Or how he's 'in love' with Anna until you come around, and then he drops her like the dirty habit she is. Face it, sweetie, whether he realizes it or not, he likes you in some regard."

"Can we not talk about this?"

Beth shrugged. "Alright, then how about we talk about why you haven't gone back home if you're so bored with traveling?"

"Who said I was bored with traveling?" AJ said, taking another sip of her coffee only to find her cup empty. Waving over the waitress, she said, "Dwa więcej proszę," before turning back to Beth.

"Hun, nobody calls visiting five countries in less than a month dull unless they're bored with traveling. You've still got your apartment, so why don't you go home?"

"Honestly?"

Beth nodded encouragingly.

"There's no one to go home to. You're here, Chuck's 'on vacation' in Prague, Morgan's in Hawaii—" she paused as their refills were brought over. "It just wouldn't be the same. Now, if you were to come back with me, then at least it'd be a bit closer to normal."

"AJ, I can't."

"Why not? What's stopping you? Can't you just ask to be reassigned if you hate it here so much?"

"It's just not that simple. Asking for a reassignment can take a long time if there's not a glaringly obvious reason why you need reassigned, like if your partner's a creeper and tries to molest you or something…don't give me that look, AJ, nothing like that has ever happened to me."

"Right, because it's not molestation when John does it, right?"

Beth turned bright red before hissing, "AJ! He just kissed me, remember? Nothing more. And weren't we talking about you?"

"We were, and now we're back to you. So, reassignment—why's it so difficult?"

"It just…a can be a lot of paperwork and, well, Beckman swears I'm needed on this mission."

"The way I understand it, she's not even really your boss. Which means you can just go over her head. Besides, Casey obviously missed his Tulip—that oughta be enough of a pressing reason."

"But the mission…"

"Sounds to me like you're babysitting a bunch of morons; anyone with half a brain can do that."

"Well…" AJ had a point, she knew. She'd had the argument with the General more times than she'd like to recall. Beckman always stood by her belief that Beth was the best person for the job; though, Beth wondered if maybe the General's decision had more to do with the 'casualties' she had faced. After Valerian's 'hands-on' approach and getting shot while trying to nab the Intersect, Beth suspected Beckman feared she had been put on active duty too quick. But until the General said something, she wouldn't be able to refute her.

Finally getting impatient, AJ snapped her fingers at Beth. "Well what! You know I'm right. You don't belong here."

"Do you?"

"What?"

"Pardon, not what. Why is it I always have to correct people on that?" Beth asked. "And I mean, maybe I don't belong here—I'm certainly not disputing that fact, but do you belong here?"

"In Warsaw? Well, no, because I—"

"—not in Warsaw, AJ. Traveling. Taking life one day at a time, flyin' by the seat of your pants. Is it you?"

"It was."

"But is it now?"

"I, it's always been me. Always. People don't just suddenly change and put down roots after a lifetime of not doing so. It's just not natural."

"That's a bunch of hogwash."

At AJ's look, she continued. "The reason you never set down roots—not just you, but people in general—is they don't have a reason to stay. They're searching for something, and when they don't find it, they head to the next town or the next bed or the next mission. It's how people get caught up in the—my job. Because if you're alone, the job is easy. You have yourself to take care of, your partner. That's it. Then you end up part of something bigger, and you see it's not just you that you have to take care of. There are people who care about you—who will hunt you down if you go missing, who aren't afraid to drop everything and tell you exactly what you screwed up with. But they're people who watch chic flicks together and tease each other, or rant about the craziness that is men.

You get comfortable—you put down roots because you flourish. You're nurtured with friendship, camaraderie, fellowship—with love—and you grow. You grow as a person, you set down roots, and you decide that maybe bein' in one place, bein' the sturdy oak or the pliable yew, maybe it's not so bad. It's perfectly natural; it's a fact of life. Some trees take a year to grow, some take five. Others still take ten or twenty—it depends on how loved and cared for said tree is. But eventually, every tree wants to thrive in the forest."

"Are we still talking about me, or are we talking about you now?" AJ said, smirking. "Because I definitely remember Casey calling one night when you didn't come home, and I have no doubt that afterwards he chewed you out proper. As for the chic flicks and teasing, you're definitely talking about Girls' Night at Ellie's. Face it, it's the pot calling the kettle black; you want to go home just as much as I do, but we can't. Not yet."

"You called it home."

"Huh. I guess I did. Tell you what, Beth, how about we make a deal? We give ourselves a year, you to wrap up whatever mission you've got going on here, me to visit every last place I've ever had an inkling to visit, and then we'll get ourselves home by whatever means necessary. And if not, we reserve the right to drag each other home."

Pausing for a moment, Beth slowly nodded, holding out her hand. "Alright, it sounds fair enough. We shake on it?"

"Unless you know someplace we can drink to it?"

"Funny you should mention that…there's a nice lil' pub down on the corner…"

"Let's go then. Proszę sprawdzić," AJ said to the waitress, paying when she brought the check over.

"You didn't have to do that," Beth said when she realized AJ had paid her tab as well.

"Fine, first round of drinks on you then," she replied with a wink.

Beth grinned secretively. "Now that, I can do."

* * *

LB here, with words of wisdom...okay, no words of wisdom, just comments. :) Well, there's the first part! What'd y'all think? Brunette Beth-weird right? So Beth and John are trying to make a long distance relationship work...and AJ's still in denial over Morgan (c'mon AC-we all know they're meant for each other!) Let us know how ya liked the chapter-we love feedback as much as AJ loves those foreign boys! (Pre-Morgan, that is)


	18. Late Night Latte: Part 2

Hello dear readers, LB here with the second part of LNL! And 2nd, for reviewing (you are amazing Dimonah Tralon!). What, haven't reviewed? :O Well, there's always a 1st time, right? :) Enjoy!

* * *

They headed across the street to the aforementioned pub. It had a good atmosphere to it, with catchy music playing loudly and people young and old alike singing along or talking even louder.

When they walked in, a burly blonde man in his fifties who looked like he belonged in the bow of a Viking ship rather than a pub came up and without pretense picked Beth up, spinning her around.

"If it isn't our favorite customer! Didn't think I'd catch your face 'round here after 'yer pal got himself in that spot of trouble a couple weeks back."

He spoke with a slight accent, but it was more German than Polish. Once Beth was properly on her feet again, she began introductions.

"AJ, this here's the reason I haven't gone plumb crazy in Poland—meet Gunter Heindrich, proprietor of the, well, I can't pronounce the Polish, but it means something like The Seven Fables."

"Siedem Bajek," AJ translated. "I like it."

"Oho, a nice Polish girl. Who's your friend, Beth?"

"This is AJ Grimes, she's actually a friend from back home."

"American, really? Well 'yer Polish accent's quite good."

Grinning, AJ said, "Dziękuję. Będę miał swój najdroższe wódki z sodą i lodu proszę."

He nodded, then turned to Beth. "Your usual, I assume."

"Right." Once he was busy preparing their drinks, Beth asked AJ, "Am I crazy, or did I hear the words 'most expensive' in there somewhere?"

"Am I crazy, or did you introduce me as AJ Grimes?"

Beth momentarily smirked, but in all seriousness said, "Precautionary detail. It's what happens when you hang out with people like me. Besides, it does have a nice ring to it, doesn't it?"

AJ chose to ignore the question, and instead responded with a question of her own. "So what's your name then? Beth Casey?"

"Close, but no cigar. Bethany Garrett—I'm working at a crafts store—I live above it. My co-workers aren't always…the greatest."

"You can say that again!"

AJ looked over to Gunter who was busy setting their drinks down. Beth sighed, and AJ's curiosity was piqued.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, lil' fighter here brings in her co-workers for a drink. One of them couldn't shut his mouth—he lands himself a couple of men looking for a fight. He thinks he can take them on, ends up not fairing as well, so she steps in. By the end, they're all knocked out cold, and Beth has nary a scrape. The man tries to thank her, throws an arm around her shoulder, and she breaks his nose."

Roaring with laughter, AJ said, "That's our Beth for you!"

"'Yer mean she's always been like that?" Gunter asked.

"Oh yeah, as long as I've known her anyway. I could tell you some pretty wild stories…"

"Hey now, no fair ganging up on me!" Beth said, looking between the two. "Don't you have other customers to tend to?" she said to the later.

"That I do. But never fret, I'll be back in a bit."

When he was gone, AJ asked, "So who was he really, the guy whose nose you broke?"

"Well that…" She looked bashful, but only for a second. "He really was my partner. Or is. James Calgary, and a damn sight more annoying than John Casey ever was or will be. He never shuts up, is constantly making flippant remarks, and has insinuated more than once that the best way for us to be partners would be to share more than just our job. After getting us in that scrape, well, he deserved to get his nose broken. 'Sides, it wasn't a very pretty nose anyway."

"The guy sounds like a real card," AJ said, still laughing. "Though now I'm worried he won't watch your back in the field. Y'know, pull a 006 to your 007 and end up betraying you, all because you broke his nose that one time."

"Oh he won't…he's a bit scared of me, to be honest. He may act all tough, but the first time I mentioned John around him and Sondra, cause they'd asked who I'd worked with last, the group's eyes widened, and James asked if I meant the Major. When I told him it was Colonel now, well…" she smiled at the memory. "Let's just say he's pretty terrified. Not that I would need John—I can be a pretty scary gal myself when I need to be. They know I have a temper—got to see it firsthand after Beckman's last orders."

"And what orders were those? Er, I know you probably can't give me specifics…"

"It's okay—it's nothing too mission-like. We were going to some black-tie affair shindig, and Beckman said that James and I would pose as a couple. I nixed the idea, saying I work alone in those types of situations—I'd be waitress and Sondra could get field work. We had an argument over that, I ended up telling her if she wanted the mission completed so damn much, she could go as James' date."

AJ gave a low whistle. "Shieße, Beth, and you haven't even been here a month yet? Who knew you were such a troublemaker?"

"Certainly not I."

The girls turned to see a man who couldn't have been more than six foot fast approaching them. He had the looks of a classic playboy—more college frat than CIA agent, but there was no doubt he must have been James Calgary, if Beth's muttered curses were anything to go by. He took a seat next to Beth, snapping to get Gunter's attention.

"Miss me?"

"Like the plague. What're you doing here?"

"Came to see you of course! You didn't come back to…you know, the office. So I thought I'd search you out. Didn't know you had such a lovely friend. I'm James Calgary, I work with Beth at the cra—"

"—cut the crap, Calgary, she knows what I do. And she's not some ditzy blonde who'll fall for your charms. You can shut up now."

Extending a hand, AJ introduced herself. "AJ Grimes, nice to meet you. Heard a lot about you."

"All good I hope."

"Quite the opposite actually. But hey, I did get a good laugh out of the fact Beth knocked you on your ass. The doctors did a good job fixing up your nose by the way."

"I'm sure she was just having a bad day," He started to drape his arm around her, and she stiffened.

"I've told you before, I have a no-touch policy; I'll thank you to keep your hands to yourself."

"Really Beth? When did that happen? Didn't have that with Casey, did you?"

"She knows Colonel Casey?" he asked, slightly taken aback. "And what does she mean you didn't have that policy in place—I mean, it's not like he would touch you."

AJ laughed outright, and Beth sighed, muttering an "I'm gonna kill her."

AJ managed to, in between her laughter, get out what she wanted to say. "Maybe it's because they were roommates. You know, the whole 'she'd wash his underwear, he'd cook her dinner, they'd watch Bonanza together on the weekend' deal. Honestly, James, I don't think you could ever compete."

"What's there to compete for? I mean, c'mon, he's like what, fifty?"

"No," Beth spoke sharply, "He's forty-three. And _if_ I was in a relationship with someone, and I'm not saying I am, I'd rather take an older man than some young hot-shot any day. The reason there isn't a 'no-touch' policy in place with John, not that it's any of your business, is because we _were_ roommates, and we _are_ friends, and—" her phone started ringing "Secret Agent Man" and she allowed a momentary smile before speaking quickly. "And that is John calling now, so if you'll excuse me for a couple, I'm gonna take this."

She didn't wait for a reply, instead heading to the back where it was quieter.

Turning back to James, AJ whispered conspiratorially, "They're _so_ in a relationship. And you're _so _in over your head."

"What about you then, what's your story? Which agency do you work for?"

"Actually, I'm a free agent, private contractor, y'know."

"I see," James said, waggling his eyebrows. "And I suppose you're a free agent in all respects then?"

AJ glared at him. "If that was your attempt to hit on me, don't."

He sighed. "Fine, fine. How long have you know dear Bethany then?"

"Oh, well, I met Beth and the Colonel while she was on her last assignment."

"Were you there when she got shot then?"

"She got WHAT?"

Of course, Beth chose just that moment to return. Seeing AJ's shocked face, she gingerly took her seat. "Um, so, well, John's doing well. What did I…miss?"

"Oh, I don't know, Beth, maybe just the fact I just learned you were bloody _shot!_"

Glaring at James, she hissed, "You _told_ her!"

"I assumed she knew, since she did know about you and your Burbank mission."

"Calgary, I swear, one of these days, I'm gonna break something more than a nose on you." She turned to AJ, who was scanning Beth, trying to pinpoint where she may have been injured.

"You won't see it. Left shoulder. Nothing too major."

"_When?_"

"After the, uh, wedding mission."

"You mean the night I left? You couldn't have called, or texted? I cannot believe—" AJ cut off and turned to James. "Leave. _Now_."

"What, why? This is just starting to get interesting."

"You think Beth is the only one around here who can throw a punch? I said, _leave_."

Hands in the air, he backed off, though still grinning. With a parting, "See you around, Beth!" he exited the pub.

"Why didn't you tell me?" AJ continued as soon as he was gone. "I would've stayed, at least until I was sure you were alright."

"I was fine—besides, I didn't know whether you were on the plane or not; no way to really get in contact. And you seemed so set on leaving. Enough people fussed over me that night. I honestly wasn't worried about my injury; I mean, there was Sarah to worry about—losing Bryce I mean. And Chuck had just…well, Chuck was getting…a lot back. Plus John had just lost his men…I didn't want the fuss. It didn't really do major damage, so I just kinda, pushed it to the side."

"Still, I can't believe you didn't tell me," AJ said, taking a large gulp of her vodka and trying not to sound too resentful. "Here, do you have your phone? I'll give you my number so that next time you get hurt, I expect to be the first to know. After Casey, of course."

Taking out her phone, Beth motioned for AJ to type in while she spoke. "I'm sorry—I didn't mean to purposefully leave you outta the loop. Promise: any more injuries, and I'll be lyin' on the stretcher shouting that they need to call AJ, she's gotta know I'm hurt. Though, I don't expect any more wounds anytime soon. Ones that are inflicted upon me, in any case."

"Good," AJ said with a nod, finishing uploading her contact information before handing the phone back. "Now, James doesn't seem half as bad as you made him out to be."

Choking on her drink, she looked up in shock to see AJ grinning at her. "Oh thank God, for about point-five seconds, I thought you were serious. I thought I was gonna have to wonder if you'd hit your head during your travels or such. As for Calgary—"

"You call him by his last name? Even though he's your partner?"

"Well, for one, most ones like us do. But second, if I start calling him by his first name, he reads too much into it—and lord knows I have enough problems keepin' him to stay on his side of the mission."

"You mean his 'winning' personality didn't win you over?"

"Oh yes!" She clapped her hands in mock-delight. "He's just so _dreamy_!"

Snickering, AJ said, "You call John by his first. Sarah and Chuck too. You should try opening up, maybe you'd like it here more then."

"I thought we agreed we wanted to be going home, not makin' nice here."

"Still, unless you plan on becoming an alcoholic, you should at least try and make the experience more tolerable. You're a friendly person. So make friends."

"I _have _made friends. Haven't I, Gunter?"

Gunter, who'd come over to see if the girls needed refills, nodded. "It's true—she's become a regular here—has gotten to know myself, my daughter Theresa. And that girl you often bring here, what's her name?"

"Sondra. Sondra Smith. We work together—she's a sweetie. Not near as bad as Calg—fine, James. See, I've made friends! And Gunter didn't even mention Ivan Sovboski."

"And who's Ivan?"

"The sweet older gentleman who owns the flower shop down the street from our craft store."

"And you and dear old Ivan go out clubbing, do you? Or maybe you and your coworker, dare I say it, have a girls' night?"

"Well, no…"

"Exactly! You need people to socialize with outside of work or a pub or a flower shop."

Beth huffed, then said, "What about you then?"

"What about me?"

"What about where are you going with all our friends? Let's see, there's no foreign men, you say—so that rules them out. Been to the clubs lately with some friends? Maybe travel together for awhile?" At AJ's look, she continued. "See? Pot meet kettle: you're just in the same predicament I'm in."

"Well, well, it's not like I really have time—what with always travelling."

"Not true—you could stay in one town for a bit—get to know the people for a bit. With modern technology, you can easily stay in touch once you go the next town or country. It's not like Europe is huge."

"I'm not just sticking around Europe," AJ protested. "I'm, erm, thinking of going to…Thailand next. And I don't speak Thai, so how exactly am I supposed to make friends there, hmmmm?"

"Well if you're not just sticking to Europe, maybe you should go look up some old friends then. I'm sure Javier would just love to hear from his old flame?" Beth said mischievously.

"Chinita, why do you keep bringing him up?"

"Because you won't accept your feelings for Morgan! Oh, sorry, I remember, you don't 'have' feelings for Morgan, in which case it'd be perfectly acceptable to spend some time with another man, like Javier."

"But I don't want to spend time with another man!"

"Because you like Morgan."

"Yes!"

Beth grinned triumphantly while AJ let out a colorful array of curses in a multitude of languages, none of which were English.

When she'd finally calmed down some, AJ said, "That was coercion and you know it. That doesn't count."

"Of course it does—people always say things truthful when under a heightened sense of emotion; that's why intimidation works so well."

"Still, you can't hold that against me. Of course I like him; he's my friend. If I didn't like him we wouldn't have stayed friends for so long."

"Not holding it against you—just pointing out a fact. And just because you're friends for a long time doesn't mean you'll always be. He's more than a friend and you know it. The sooner you admit it, the sooner we can move on to the next step."

"And what's the next step according to you, making out over breakfast? Then moving to opposite corners of the earth? Thanks but no thanks. Besides, I have a rule about not dating friends."

"Correction: we did not make out over breakfast. We simply kissed. And…our relationship is...complicated. Because of work. And what's that rule about not dating friends? Wasn't Javier technically a friend?"

"Again with the damn Colombian," AJ muttered darkly. "No, he was not technically a friend. He was a damn fine kisser, and good way to burn off some alcohol-heightened hormones. Oh gswno, I can't believe I just said that."

Shaking her head, Beth couldn't help but laugh. "Yes, again with the 'damn Columbian'. And I didn't need to know that, though I'll store it in memory just in case I need some blackmail. But I'm talking about the time he showed up in Burbank. If I recall, you called him merely 'a friend' before shortly afterwards we learned you were dating. Well, until he left again, but still."

"Oh, that was just to make Mo—re sense, since you guys didn't know him and all. But he was still my ex, and everyone knows you can't ever be just friends with an ex. Think about it, has that ever worked out for you?"

"Well…I'm still friends with Zach, but he was only my first boyfriend—and we grew up together. And then…yes, it has worked for me before actually. And don't think I didn't catch you were making 'Mo' jealous. I do believe you forgot a couple letters, hun."

"Fine, then I amend my rule to exclude exes," AJ said with a roll of her eyes. "Anyway—"

"Closing in ten minutes ladies," Gunter told them.

"Anyway, I guess it's time we go," AJ finished.

Beth shook her head. "Oh no you don't, I wanna hear more about this 'no dating friends business.' How about a nightcap at my place?"

"Alright, so long as you've got something decent to drink. You know those fruity things you drink don't do much fit if yor me."

"I'm sure I'll have something you can stomach."

"Let's go then."

* * *

AC here with a couple closing remarks. 1st, isn't James a total ass? And 2nd, don't you love Beth & AJ's quick back-and-forth? Review to let us know what you thought, pretty please with the Chuck character of your choice on top! :)


	19. Late Night Latte: Part 3

A/N AC here with the last installment of LNL; special thanks to everyone who's reading & to Dimonah Tralon & retropanda37 for reviewing! On another note, look for new posts on LB's & my individual stories coming soon! Usual disclaimer & such apply, so enjoy!

* * *

They paid their tab and headed out, Beth easily maneuvering through the partially lit streets. They had walked about ten minutes before Beth stopped in front of an old building of burnt orange. She gestured AJ ahead of her, directing her past an array of hand-crafted items to a well-worn pair of steps. After three flights of steps, AJ was slightly winded, but Beth, being used to the hike, nimbly stepped past her to the forest green door at the end of the hall. After three keys, the door was finally unlocked, and they stepped inside.

The room was a great room of sorts; a kitchen, dining room, living room combination with pale green walls. AJ saw a few familiar pictures of Beth's family, Beth and Casey, and the whole Burbank group littered around the apartment, but other than that, there were few personal items around.

"Where's all your Western paraphernalia?"

"Huh? Oh." She went to the bookshelf and put up her Glock before turning back to face AJ. "Well, it's still…in Burbank."

"With Casey."

"…Yes."

"Of course." Plopping down on the nearest chair, AJ stretched out while Beth rummaged through her cabinets for something to drink.

As she searched, she asked, "So are you ever going to explain your dating policy?"

"What? Oh yeah. Well, say, just hypothetically, that I dated Morgan."

"Okay, so, you're dating Morgan. Having nice nerdy dates with sizzling shrimp dinners, finishing them off with watching—what? You said hypothetical, I'm making it hypothetical!"

"You're making it specific."

"Hypothetically specific."

AJ huffed, but plowed on. "Anyway, so hypothetically we're dating and happy as can be and then Anna ho, sorry Wu, comes back to town from…wherever she was. And Morgan goes back to her."

"Why would he go back to her? Because, from my standpoint, he's never been completely happy _with_ her. If you'll remember, he didn't seem too upset she was, ahem, 'sick' at the Employee picnic, nor was he too upset when she couldn't show up for Ellie's Christmas party."

"I, you, this is all hypothetical anyway! Right, so he goes back to her. And then where does that leave me? Sad and angry, that's where. No way we could go back to just being friends after that, is there?"

"No, but it's all hypothetical, right? So let's say…Anna ho comes back to town, and Morgan tells her off, tells her he's happy, he has you, and hell would freeze 'fore he let you go. Then life is happy. But…it's just all hypothetical."

AJ opened her mouth to answer, then shut it again. While they'd been talking Beth had served them some white wine and had taken a seat across from her at the kitchen table. After taking a taste AJ said, "You're not going to let me win this argument, are you?"

"Nope."

"Fine then, change of subject. Other than drinking away your work-related frustrations and talking to Casey, what've you been up to in your spare time?"

"Oh, I haven't actually drank that much. Lotta my spare time's been helping set up this operation. It's going to be a two or three year—if not more—mission, so they need connections, a decent base, stuff like that. And since I'm the most experienced of them, with Sondra being second, I get to be in charge. Always fun you know. And, I dunno, I've visited some of the sights. I took a day trip to go see Auschwitz, and I've been to the Gestapo Headquarters museum…the city zoo, the Warsaw Ghetto…I feel like there's someplace else I'm forgettin,' but yeah…that's what I do. And a lot of craftwork, which I have to say, is preferable to making yogurt any day of the week."

"Three years? You'd better not stay that long. And personally, I'd kill for some yogurt making. Or for a Nerd Herd emergency. Best job I've picked up so far was waiting tables in Turkey. Considering my Turkish is touchy at best, I was surprised I lasted the day."

"Oh don't worry—there's no way I'll stay here three years; come hell or high water, I'll be back in the states soon. A waitress, eh? Dunno if I can see ya as one; how long did the job last?"

"Four days; not bad by my standards. In the old days I was lucky to keep a job for more than two days."

"You're telling me you've made a habit of picking up odd jobs around the world?"

"Keeps life on the move interesting," AJ said with a shrug.

"And here I thought cover jobs were bad—and I never had a choice in the matter. You can also keep life on the move interesting by, I don't know…visiting the sights? Meeting random strangers? Er, not that you should meet random strangers…that's not always good."

"Everyone visits the sights, Beth," AJ pointed out. "The only way to really experience a culture is to embed yourself in it. Besides, the first job I took, more than anything was to keep me busy while I healed from a broken leg."

"You broke your leg while you were traveling?" Beth asked, surprised. "How'd you manage that?"

"Long story. Let's just say I won't have to pay the entrance fee at the Coliseum for the rest of my life. But anyway, I ended up stranded in Rome for six weeks until I could get my cast off, and I ended up working in a local library. That's also when I learned to cook pasta, thanks to my amazing landlady Francesca."

"Wow…well, I guess I do see your point. Spies don't always have that luxury—you're taught to not get close—your new friend down at the gelato café could be your next target. So you tend to stay to yourself, being friendly, but keeping people at arm's length. I never was very good at that."

"I wouldn't guess so. You're a people person."

Nodding, Beth reached for a dish on the table, uncovering it to produce peanut M&Ms. At AJ's odd glance, she shrugged. "What? It said dessert wine. Anyway, you're right about me being a people person; my inability to keep the subjects at acquaintance level only was the one thing that almost kept me from passing through The Farm."

"You mean The Farm's not just an urban myth? That's so cool!"

"Real as rain in the Amazon. We have to go to training somewhere, you know. Some, like John, train in the military, be it Marines or Navy or what-have-you, but agents like Sarah and myself go through the Farm. Though it's about the farthest thing from a farm you can get to. 'Cept maybe the obstacle courses."

"And they teach you not to fraternize with civilians? How'd you ever pass? I mean in Burbank alone you were friends with me, Morgan, Ellie, Awesome, Kate, Kate's brother…"

"I don't really need the full list," Beth said. "'Sides, most of you were an exception, because my job was to protect Chuck and you hung around with Chuck."

Though her tone was mostly teasing, there was still a bit of a challenge in AJ's next words. "You telling me you're only friends with me because it was part of your mission?"

Oh fudge. Beth shook her head, mentally beating herself up. She really stuck her foot in her mouth this time, didn't she? "That's not it at all. If I hadn't liked you, I wouldn't have gotten close to you. But it was easier to acquaint myself with those close to Chuck than it was to get to know any James Dean in Burbank. I caught more flak over getting to know Kate than getting to know you or Ellie, because we knew you were safe, because Chuck was safe. Kate could have been 'an enemy spy' or something (which is a bunch of bull—she's a sweetie, would never be an enemy spy). Admittedly, I didn't expect to become so close to you…"

"—I could've just as easily been an enemy spy as Kate, you know. There are things about me you don't know."

"Like what? You couldn't be an enemy spy; spy maybe, but not enemy. You're loyal to your friends, you have a moral compass. Enemy spies don't."

"How do you know I have a moral compass? I could just be an incredible actress. Bet you don't know I've shot someone before."

Beth raised an eyebrow. "AJ, I'm a CIA agent—my specialty is reading people—even great actresses don't fool me. Though, you're right—I didn't know you shot someone. Why'd ya shoot 'em?"

AJ said with a triumphant smirk, "Why would I tell you? Apparently you didn't expect to become so close to me."

"Or I expected to get the information a kinder way; I'm not the kind of spy who pours over files to find my information, or watches surveillance—if don't wanna tell me, that's your business; it won't hurt my feelings. We all have our secrets."

AJ bit her lip, drinking some more wine before speaking again. "Fine, fine. My parents and brother had gone out somewhere or other and I was grounded, which was hardly a surprise. Some men broke into the mansion, probably looking to rob the place. When they realized I was home though, they thought they could score a bigger payout with a kidnapping."

"_What!_ When did this happen? Did you call the police? How old were you?"

Smiling at Beth's reaction, AJ said, "I was sixteen. And no, I didn't call the cops. What I did do was go into Father's office, get his old collectible revolver from the safe, and shoot the first guy that came through the door in the kneecap."

"Didya mean to shoot him in the kneecap?"

"Well…I was aiming for his head."

"How many were there? I mean, did they flee after ya shot the one man or…?" Beth trailed off, finishing off her glass of wine and serving both AJ and herself some more.

"There were four of them, a professional crew from was what the cops speculated afterwards. I guess the one I shot was their leader, because they sure were pissed. Stunned too though, enough that I managed to get to the panic room. Called the cops from in there, but by the time they arrived the men were long gone."

"I'm impressed—both for shooting the man and keepin' your cool, though I have to ask—what the heck's a panic room?"

"Probably shouldn't have shot him in retrospect; Mother threw a fit when the cleaners couldn't get the blood out of the carpet. And haven't you ever seen the movie with Jodie Foster and Kristen Stewart before she was a vampire's lover? A panic room's a room rich people have built into their homes with fortified walls and a dead bolt and a separate phone line to call the police. Always thought it was stupid til I had to use it."

"You could have been kidnapped, killed! And your mother was worried about _blood _in the _carpet? _What kind of a—that's ridiculous! And can honestly say I've never seen that movie. Daddy'd say a sawed-off shotgun works better than a panic room any day. Panic room induces panic—shotgun creates it."

"Mother probably would've been pleased if they'd gotten me out of her hair; by that time I'd been written out of the will and they were only putting up with me for appearance's sake," AJ said with a shrug. "And I have to say I'd agree with your dad, I sure could've used a shotgun."

Beth growled rather Casey-like, shaking her head. "I swear to all things good and holy if I _ever_ meet your parents…they already disowned you at sixteen? What _kind_ of people…" she trailed off, looking across the room, anger radiating from her.

"Sure did—they'd already grown tired of their 'rebellious problem' before I was even walking I suspect. Once I learned how to use my own brain, they realized I wouldn't stand for being their puppet."

"So they just drop you? They may be blood, but people like that don't deserve to raise their children. If you can't be a parent to your child, then get the balls to give him or her up to someone who can; someone who'll love them, cherish them, nurture them into being the best they can be. Your grandmother couldn't raise you full-time?"

"She asked for custody more than a few times, but my parents wouldn't give it to her. Think of what their high standing friends would've said. No, they kept me around for appearances' sake, shipping me off to a nearby prep school during most of the year and to Gran's for the summer. Always loved summers, and always hated my family. That's just how it went."

"I guess we can be thankful you had your grandmother; without her, you would have had to suffer that horrendous family of yours full-time."

AJ nodded. "Oh believe me, I know. Because of Gran, I got to meet the Bartowskis and Morgan, and by association you and Sarah and Devon and Casey. She was a helluva lady, Gran was."

"If you don't mind me asking…what was she like? You never really talked about her in Burbank, not that I blame you—I mean, you, she…well, you lost her pretty recently," Beth said.

"Gran was, well, she wasn't an Abbott. Not by blood anyway. She came from money, but not of the same caliber as Pops, so she never cared all that much about her social standing. When Pops died (I was three I think, don't remember him much) she moved to Burbank, fed up with the family politics, and after taking her share of the family fortune, split the rest into trust funds—equal amounts for Father and his siblings, and for Ethan, our cousins, and me. Then she let Father take over the family business. The only condition of his takeover was that Ethan and I were allowed to spend the summers with her. I think she wanted to keep us grounded, try and shield us from the insanity. Ethan resented it; I was grateful."

"She sounds like a marvelous lady. I wish I had been around to meet her. What is the family business? And why did your brother resent it—isn't he your twin?"

"She really was; she was the antithesis of the rest of the family really. The family business started as a small law firm, Abbott and Sons, started by my great-great-great-grandfather Abbott and his two sons to serve the community. It eventually became the multimillion dollar corporate firm Abbott and Abbott, which serves only those who can pay the most, regardless of what kind of scumbags they are. Actually, Father prefers dealing with scumbags over honest folks, probably because he relates better to them. As for my dolt of a brother, we may be twins, but he always did buy into my parent's grooming and scheming and master plans. Gran and I rocked the boat, so as far as he was concerned we were best off jumping ship."

"They sounds absolutely horrifying. Happier topics to turn to? I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that your mother is the 'socialite' of the family, like any 'proper' well-bred woman?"

"Of course," AJ said, smiling into her wineglass. "Mother hosts the dinner parties and runs the coming out ceremonies and all that jazz. Merde, I still cringe when I think of the dresses she used to make me wear. You're right, though, I think it's time for happier topics. So why don't you tell me about your family?"

"Oh, well, um, you know I lived in Tennessee, that much is pretty evident. Mom and Daddy raised me on a pretty big farm; I grew up 'round animals and farm machinery. Daddy, God bless 'im, he's such a good man. He's a good ole' boy; tends to be the quieter of the two, though the boys always said that was cause Mom did all the talkin'. He grew up 'bout a mile 'way from Mom when they were growin' up; asked her when she was sixteen if she wanted to be Mrs. Amelia Máire Daniels, 'stead of bein' Amelia Jamison. She told 'im no, and he was crushed, til' she continued, "But I'll be Millie Máire Daniels". She always hated her full name. Mom's quite a bit like me, or rather, I'm like her. We butt heads cause of it. Let's see, well, what else do you wanna know?"

"I don't know, just anything. What was it like growing up in a happy household, and a farm no less?"

"Well, it was never dull, I'll tell you that! We always ate meals as a family, Mom always said a hard day's work couldn't begin 'til ya had a meal fit for a worker in your belly. She taught me to cook and bake. The kitchen's bright yellow, but our dishes were always a multitude of colors, none of them quite matching one another. We'd sit down everyone, the boys included, for family meals. They were a little weird, the meals—we had our biggest during midday because Daddy'd come in from the fields famished. So would the boys for that matter. Oh! I haven't explained the boys, have I?"

AJ shook her head, and Beth grinned. "The boys—also known as the overly protective, annoying and non-related members of my family. They were all hired hands that helped with the farm. Most of them lived on the property—there was a building with their rooms off near the side of the house. Let's see, there's Zach and Dan, and Darryl for a time, and Tony and Ash. Darryl's got a farm of his own now, and Tony just got hitched to his lil' gal. The rest still spend holidays and such with us; it's always a treat."

"And did any of those boys ever become more than just friends to you?"

"Hardly. Well, Zach was technically my first boyfriend, but it was puppy love. The other boys are all older than me, more older brother-type than dating material. 'Sides, Daddy has certain rules in that regard. And I wasn't the kinda girl to really pay 'ttention to that 'til I was older."

"Fair enough. So, I have to ask, how did a gal like you end up joining the CIA then? Somehow, I don't expect you fit the usual profile."

"Well, y'know, that's a pretty good question, and I'm not sure if I have an exact answer. Part of it was I wanted to see the world; I mean, I'd lived in Polk County all my life; there had to be more than just farming and workin' at the the Dairy Bar. So one I graduated, I packed up ole' Duke, kissed Mom and Daddy bye, and drove east. Ended up gettin' in a spot of trouble in Hopewell, it's just outside of Richmond. I was waitressin' at the time at a lil' café and we got a couple..dodgy characters in there. I was closin' up for the night, so it was just me and the cook—we didn't get much traffic. Turns out they were runnin' from the law, never did get what they were runnin' from, just that the authorities wanted 'em real bad—so bad they had the CIA and FBI chasin' 'em. Well, they tried to turn it to a hostage situation, and I wasn't goin' down without a fight. Ended up bein' offered an opportunity to join the CIA—they were impressed with the way I handled the situation."

"Still, must be hard lying to your family, since you're obviously close. I know how much Chuck hates lying to Ellie."

"It is, to a degree. I mean, they know what they need to know. It's easier for me, I suspect, than for Chuck. I stepped into all this willingly, and he didn't have a choice. Mom and Daddy never ask for specifics; they understand I can't say anything. Though…they know it's dangerous. Real dangerous sometimes."

AJ noticed how as she spoke, Beth fiddled with her necklace. Still, she didn't comment. Instead she asked, "Do they at least get to know where you're at? How come they never came to visit you in Burbank?"

"They know where I'm at; Mom and I talk once a week. The only time I won't tell 'em is if I'm undercover—it's safer that way. Like now, Mom and Daddy know I'm in Poland, but if I were to go undercover for some reason, I'd let them still think I was in Poland, so I don't worry them. The reason they don't visit is as much for their own reasons as for their safety. With a farm to run, Daddy's pretty particular about leaving for whatever reasons. Spring and fall are usually out for them travelling—planting, baling hay, harvesting—it's his busy season. 'Bout the only time they'd really travel is winter, and even then they could be cutting wood. Daddy's never been outta Polk County practically, except to visit Mom's family in Alabama. They're both very much…rooted people."

"Once we're back in Burbank, you should convince them to come around. I'd like to meet them, they sound amazing."

Beth nodded. "I'll try. Something tells me y'all would get along."

"Well I already like them better than my own parents, so I don't doubt that." Glancing down at her watch, AJ added, "Holy gówno! Do you know what time it is?"

"By your expression, I'm guessing it's late?"

"Try early! It's already 4:28!"

Beth's eyes widened and she shook her head. "Please tell me you're joking."

"Wish I was. I've gotta get going to the hotel, maybe catch a couple hours of sleep before I check out that yogurt shop, search for a job."

"I envy that. Time for me to take a shower, make coffee John Casey style, and head to work."

"John Casey style, eh? Good luck with that. So listen, we should get together again before I take off for…wherever it is I end up going next."

Tone full of regret, Beth said, "Wish I could, but I've got a mission scheduled to start this after afternoon and I'm not sure when it'll be done."

"Bummer," AJ said. "Ah well, at least we get to say goodbye this time, yeah?"

"That we do." They both stood to go, and Beth wrapped AJ in a tight hug. "You'll take care of yourself, will ya?"

AJ returned the hug, nodding. "I should be telling _you_ that. No more bullet wounds."

"Can't promise that, not in my line of work. But I will be careful."

"And you'll remember our promise?"

"Course I will. Meet ya in Burbank?" Beth was stalling—she hated to see AJ go; having her friend here, seeing her and talking about anything and everything was nice, but it made the ache to go back home to the US, to Burbank, all the more noticeable.

"You bet, I'll race you there," AJ said, smiling. "And say hi to Casey from me." She was stalling just as much as Beth, not at all eager to be on her own again, missing her friends and her home once more. Still, she knew they couldn't postpone the inevitable indefinitely. Pulling her into another hug, she added, "Keep in touch."

"Will do, 'specially now that I actually have your number. If you're ever in the Poland area again, stop on by—I'd be glad of the rescuing that I'm guaranteed to need from Calgary."

"Now that, I can do." After a round of 'see you soon's and 'ciao', Beth shut the door, and made her way to the coffee pot. The apartment seemed dimmer since AJ had left, and it was all Beth could do to not call John and tell him of her unexpected visitor. But he'd question why she was up so early, and then he'd worry that she wasn't getting enough sleep, so she nixed the idea. But maybe…with all the talk AJ and her had done about the States, maybe it was time to take a visit. She had enough vacation stockpiled, and a weekend away couldn't hurt. Sondra would take care of things, and Calgary, well, she didn't really care what he did as long as he kept to himself and didn't mess up the mission. With that thought in mind, she headed to the computer to send a quick word to Beckman—she had a weekend to plan.

AJ meanwhile hailed a cab and managed to make it to her hotel before five. Man, she was so glad she'd decided to get a coffee instead of going to bed early. Pulling out her laptop and setting it up on the empty side of her bed, she brought up her vlog to see if anyone had commented on her latest post. Sure enough, there was one new comment from a certain Burbankian Bearded Chef, saying how Italian cuisine still didn't compare to sizzling shrimp. Shaking her head, AJ typed back a quick response before shutting the computer back down. Maybe she could go to New Zealand next; they were famous for their shrimp after all. And then from there it really wouldn't be such a stretch to pay Morgan a visit in Hawaii, to exchange recipes and catch up. She was sure she could convince him ditch Anna for a weekend to show her the sights…yes, that could definitely work. With that thought in mind, she fell asleep.

* * *

So what do you think, looks like Beth's going back to Burbank for a visit & AJ's heading to Hawaii-think either of them will be able to stay away from home for long? Reviews much appreciated, as always!


End file.
